Old Meets New
by RockSunner
Summary: This is a Scooby-Doo to Scooby-Doo cross-over in which the original Mystery Inc. SDWAY through WNSD comes to Crystal Cove. Spoilers to the end of SDMI.
1. Green Mist

This is a Scooby-Doo cross-over in which the old Mystery Inc. (SDWAY through WNSD) comes to Crystal Cove.

**Old Meets New**

The Mystery Machine hurtled down the road in the dusk.

"Fred, are you sure we're going the right way? I think we, like, got lost in that spooky green fog," Shaggy said.

"Rooky reen rog," said Scooby-Doo with a shudder.

"Don't worry," Fred said, "There's a sign up ahead."

"Crystal Cove. The most hauntedest place on earth," Velma read. "They need to work on their grammar."

"Most h-hauntedest place on earth? I just knew it!" Shaggy said. "Why can't we ever get lost near a nice quiet resort?"

"It seems like we always end up where we're needed," Daphne said. "Let's find out what their haunt problem is, and solve it for them."

"Here we go again," said Shaggy.

"Look over there, it's the Crystal Cove Spook Museum," said Velma. "That would be the perfect place to start asking questions."

"I hope they have a snack bar," said Shaggy. "I'm starved."

"Re roo," said Scooby.

They entered the museum and were met by the proprietress, a large woman with a streak of white in her auburn hair.

"Welcome, visit... oh my! You gave me a start. You look so much like them you almost had me fooled for a second. You must be huge fans of Mystery Incorporated. What authentic costumes!"

"I don't know what you mean," said Fred. "These aren't costumes."

"Well, yours could use a few touches, young man. The real Fred Jones always wears a red ascot and he doesn't have a blue stripe on his shirt."

"What do you think had happened?" Daphne whispered to Velma. "Have we gone back in time?"

"Let's wait and listen, and try to find out more," Velma said.

"Where are you folks from?" the museum lady asked.

"Coolsville, Ohio, but we travel a lot," said Fred.

"And you've come all the way here to see our famous little town. How nice."

"Like, we're sort of lost here," said Shaggy. "We could use some directions. And food."

"You must meet my daughter Velma," said the lady. "She's working here today. She can give you the tour, and you can have a snack in our coffee bar afterward. Oh Velma, come out and meet some out-of-town fans!"

A slimmer Velma appeared from the back of the museum. "Fred... you came back? Shaggy, how did you get away? Jinkies, there's another me! You...you're disguised as us. Who are you and what do you want?"

"Like I said dear, they're big fans who came to visit our town, dressing the part. I'll leave you to get acquainted and take the tour."

After she left the room, Scooby looked back and forth between the two nearly-identical twins. "Rhelma and Rhelma?"

"You may have fooled my mom, but I don't believe the tourist bit for a second. Your faces are too close to be real – they must be masks. This is some kind of scheme," said the Crystal Cove Velma.

"Not masks," said Fred. "Try to unmask us and you'll see."

"I think I've almost figured it out," said the Coolsville Velma. "I thought of an experiment to try. Velma, would you switch glasses with me for a second?"

"You think you can get me blind and then kidnap me, or something? My mom's right here, in calling distance. I'll call your bluff," said the other Velma.

She handed over her glasses and tried on the ones her twin gave her. "I can see perfectly... it can't be.. Did you raid my optometrist's records and get a duplicate pair made? But then how could you see, wearing them?"

They traded glasses back, and the Coolsville Velma said, "We arrived here through a strange green fog. My theory is that this is a parallel world, and we're the counterparts of you and your friends."

The Crystal Cove Velma said, "All right, suppose that were the case, which I don't completely buy. What are you doing here?"

"Like, we were driving along and just got lost here," Shaggy said.

Velma turned away from Shaggy, tears in her eyes, "You look and sound so much like him, it hurts."

"Like, I'm sorry," said Shaggy. "Something's happened to the Shaggy you know?"

"He was sent away to military school by his parents. His Scooby-Doo was sent to a farm," Velma said.

"Rarm?" Scooby asked. "Ro no."

"Fred has left town, and Daphne isn't speaking to me. Our gang is dead. Now all of you show up, looking like we did when we were happy. It's too much."

"Maybe we can help," said Daphne. "We must be here for a reason."

"You solve mysteries?" Velma asked.

"Everywhere we go, all over the world. Cases just fall into our laps," Daphne said.

"Maybe you can help, then. I don't know. Come back into the wax museum and we can talk about it."

As the gang entered the wax museum, they gave a start and looked around wildly.

"Like, it's a shrine to all our early cases," said Shaggy.

"**Our** early cases," the local Velma said. "But my folks don't use them for that. They pretend they were real spooks to impress the tourists. Our town doesn't like solving us solving mysteries because they say it's bad for business."

The other Velma was looking at the wax figures. "Wow, this takes me back. Henry Bascombe, the Space Kook. Creeps and Crawls, the Phantom Shadows. Mr. Carswell, the Creeper..."

"Carlswell, not Carswell," said the local Velma.

"I guess that's just one of the things that's different," said the out-of-town Velma.

"You've solved cases like ours, and how many more?" asked the local Velma.

"Hundreds," said Fred.

"You look like us, but you must be past teen-age by now. How old..."

"Don't ask that question," said Daphne. "We just age well."

"So you're not in high school like we are."

"Like, we graduated a long time ago," said Shaggy.

"Any relationships between you? Like, you and you..." She looked at Fred and Daphne.

"Just good friends," said Fred. "Those rumors about Daphne and I going off together..."

"As if we would, in spooky places where we might get caught by crooks in monster disguises, or by our friends. Not to mention the dust that would get all over my clothes," said Daphne.

Velma looked a little curious at this too-specific denial, but she went on. "Or you and you?" This time she looked at her counterpart and Shaggy.

"Ruh-uh," said Scooby.

"Like, that would never happen," said Shaggy.

"He only has eyes for food, not me," said the out-of-town Velma with a trace of bitterness.

The local Velma decided to leave that hot topic alone. "You said you travel all over the world. How can you afford that? Do you have jobs?"

"Like, sometimes we have to take short-term jobs if we run out of money toward the end of the month," said Shaggy. "But usually we're loaded."

"My family is rich, and we're on a monthly stipend from them and from government grants," said Daphne. "They think we benefit the world, just going around doing what we do."

The local Velma sighed. "What a life you have. Rich, famous, honored..."

"Rere's ronsters," said Scooby. "Ranger reverywhere re ro."

"You're harder to understand than our Scooby," said the local Velma. "He doesn't use so many r's."

"Rorry," said Scooby.

"It's all right," said the local Velma.

"Now, how can we help you?" Fred asked.

"It's hard to know where to start, but maybe you can help, Fred. What do you know about your real parents? Our Fred has gone looking for his."

"I grew up with them. Skip and Peggy Jones," said Fred. "They're fine folks."

"Our Fred grew up with the former Mayor, who turned out to be a psycho freak who kidnapped him as a baby. His real parents are Brad and Judy Chiles, but they probably changed their names. I'd be surprised if they picked Jones as their last name. That's the psycho's name, Fred Jones Sr."

"Wow," said Fred. "I don't think we have the same history at all."

"I think we'll have to work that one out for ourselves, then," said the local Velma. "What about this? Ed Machine, the CEO of a big local company, has disappeared from his home. You could help me solve that one; he's helped our gang in the past, no doubt for his own sinister motives."

"Sounds like a police matter," said Daphne.

"You don't know our local police," said the Crystal Cove Velma.

"No monster angle to it," said Fred. "Is there anything else, some new monster case?"

The local Velma said, "If you're looking for a monster, you could check out the Executioner. He's been attacking the Destroido Corporation and its employees, dressed all in black with a hooded mask like an old-time headsman. I wanted to follow that one up too, but I couldn't without help."

"Gang," Fred said, "I think we have another mystery on our hands."


	2. Broke

**Broke**

The local Velma said, "It's past sunset, and the wax museum will be closed soon. The coffee shop stays open late, though."

Shaggy said, "My stomach is rumbling. I need food."

Scooby whined. He was hungry too.

Daphne said, "We also need to find a place to stay, like a hotel."

"You realize you're not rich here," said the local Velma.

"Jinkies! She's right," said the out-of-town Velma. "Our credit cards and ATM cards are no good here."

"May I see one of your dollar bills?" the local Velma asked.

Fred handed her one and she looked it over carefully.

"It looks pretty good and it should pass," she said. "But technically it's counterfeit since it wasn't minted here. The serial numbers will be out of whack if they check. Oh, and the Secretary of the Treasury's name is different. That's not good."

"So, like, basically we're broke?" Shaggy asked.

"That's about right. And I'm the poorest member of our crew, so I can't help much," the local Velma said. "We could maybe enlist our Daphne, but it won't be an easy sell."

"If we can put up somewhere for the night, we can work on that tomorrow," said Fred.

"I know of a place," said the local Velma. "Our Fred's empty house. I had to learn everything about the security system when I was cleaning up after the haunting there. I can get you in."

"Is there any food there?" Shaggy asked.

"There's plenty of food in the refrigerator, as far as I know. Just don't try to make pizza. I never figured out how Pericles made the dough come alive, so better leave that alone just in case."

"There's a lot we don't know about this new place, " said Fred.

"I'll fill you in on the way," said the local Velma.

"Thanks, Velma," said Daphne.

"We'd better start using a different name for me to tell us apart," the out-of-town Velma suggested. "You could call me Dace. It's not really my middle name, though a lot of people think so. It's a nickname I picked up at my other high school, 'Dace the Mace' Dinkley."

"Why that name?" asked the local Velma.

"I'm a lot stronger in my upper body than I look. Someone tried to push me around and found that out the hard way," said Dace. "My real middle name is Daisy; that got shortened and changed to rhyme with 'mace' and there you have it."

"How strong are you?" asked Velma.

"Strong enough to pick up Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby and run with them," Dace said.

"Jinkies," said Velma.

They arrived at the empty Jones house and Velma got them in.

"I need to get back to the museum," she told them. "Any other questions?"

Scooby asked, "Relma, rhy a rarm? Rhy not Rooby-Dum or Ruby-Doo?"

Velma looked blank.

Shaggy said, "Like, he means, if Shaggy's parents had to send Scooby away, why not to one of his relatives like Scooby-Dum or Ruby-Doo instead of some farm?"

"I've never heard of those relatives," said Velma. "I'm not sure we know them here."

"I saw a statue of Scrappy-Doo in the museum," said Daphne. "Ruby-Doo is his mother."

Velma said in a cold voice, "We've sworn never to talk about that dog. What he did is beyond anything we can forgive."

"Rappy did rad?" asked Scooby.

"Ours was a great little pup," said Shaggy. "A little annoying sometimes, but brave as anything. He palled around with Scooby and me while the others were off doing other jobs. We didn't so much solve mysteries as, like, get into scrapes, but it was fun. Then Daphne got back with us and we had some more real mystery adventures."

"What happened to him?" asked Velma, still with a little chill in her voice.

"After the thirteen ghosts he, like, grew out of his hero worship of Scoob," said Shaggy. "He went out west to stay with Scooby's brother Yabba-Doo, who works for a deputy sheriff."

"Rabba's a real rero," said Scooby.

"I never heard of that brother, either," said Velma. "But maybe you can look up some of these relatives, see if they exist here and can help. But watch out for that pup – he's not the nice one you know."

"I guess we'd better say goodnight and let you get back to your place," said Fred. "Tomorrow we'll start to tackle the mystery."

The gang got something to eat, and settled down to watch the news on TV so they could catch up on events in this new world.

"Greetings, Mystery Incorporated the third," a voice broke in as the picture broke up.

"What is this?" asked Velma Dace. "How does he know who we are?"

"I know a great deal," said the voice. "You may call me Mr. E, and I require your help."

"Velma told us something about you," said Daphne. "You're been using the other gang for your own purposes, and lying to them. Why should we help you?'

"Because I'm the one who brought you here, and I'm the only one who can send you back," said Mr. E.

"Like, what do you want from us?" asked Shaggy.

"Something you're already planning to do, if I'm not mistaken. Stop the Executioner."

"Do you know who the Executioner is?" asked Velma Dace.

"I've found the other Mystery Incorporated did better without too much information," said Mr. E. "I'll just give you a warning: watch out for what's under the hood."

The TV resumed its normal program.


	3. On Dating Actors

**On Dating Actors**

"What I suggest we do first today is try to get your Daphne back on the team," said Fred the next morning.

"She won't talk to me," said Velma. "She blames me for not telling the gang sooner about Angel Dynamite. It's not fair."

"Angel Dynamite is another person we should see," suggested Dace, the other Velma. "She must have a bushel of useful information."

"I don't trust her and I won't talk with her. I blame her for not telling the gang sooner about herself," said Dace.

"Like, didn't you just say Daphne behaving like that to you wasn't fair?" asked Shaggy.

"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds," said Velma.

"Robgoblin? Rhere?" said Scooby-Doo, looking around in alarm.

"That was just a quotation from Ralph Waldo Emerson, Scooby," said Velma. "Sorry."

"Rhere's Raldo?" asked Scooby.

"Never mind," said Velma.

"Anyway, let us talk to Daphne. Maybe we can change her mind," said the other Daphne. "If anyone can, I should be able to."

"Better let Fred start it off," said Dace. "You'll scare her, being her doppelganger and all."

"Roppelganger? Rore ronsters?" Scooby was distressed.

"She just means I look like her," said Daphne.

"If Fred talks to her first I bet she'll speak to him," said Velma. "She'll want to tell him off."

Sure enough, when they drove to Daphne's family mansion and Fred knocked on the door, Daphne appeared in a rage.

"Fred Jones, or Joe Blank, or whatever, I never want to speak with you again," said the Crystal Cove Daphne. "I've moved on. Baylor Hotner is going to be the new man in my life."

"Who?" asked Fred.

"Just like you not to know the most gorgeous hunk of movie star who ever played a were-turtle in a Dusk movie," said Daphne. "He's asked me out, and I'm going."

"Fine with me," said Fred. "But what about helping with a mystery?"

"What? That's not how I expected you to react... wait... are you really Fred?"

"Not really. I'm Fred from a parallel world."

"That's a little more like the Fred I know," said Daphne. "But you're supposed to be jealous."

"I'll prove I'm who I say. Come on out, gang!" Fred called.

Out from the bushes came Shaggy, Scooby, Velma, Dace, and finally the Coolsville Daphne.

"Two of Velma? Two of me?" asked Daphne in shock.

"Like, I'm not the one you know either," said Shaggy.

"Re reither," said Scooby.

"Okay, this is very weird, but I'm not coming back to any gang to solve mysteries, the real Mystery Inc. or a copy from another world. Like my Fred said, Mystery Incorporated is dead."

"There's the mystery of how we got here, and how to get us back," said Fred. "Mr. E claims responsibility. If he has that much power and he's as bad as Velma thinks, he needs to be stopped. Plus there's an Executioner on the loose."

"Not my problem," said Crystal Cove Daphne. "I'm not doing mysteries anymore. Besides, you already have a Daphne."

"But ours doesn't have money," said Shaggy. "Like, none of us do."

"Oh, if money's what you want, that's not a problem," said Daphne. "Wait a moment."

She went to the family safe and returned with a large bundle of bills. She also produced a credit card.

"Here's my Platinum Monster Card," she said. "You can sign my name to any charges, other Daphne. Just leave me alone."

The other Daphne took the cash and the card. "Thank you, Daphne. One word of advice: don't date actors. You can't tell if they're sincere, and they almost always turn out to be villains. I mean, who better to dress up as a monster than someone who plays one in the movies? I never date actors."

"We'll, you're not me. I mean you are, but you're a different me. I'm sure Baylor Hotner is sincere. And those abs... wow," said Crystal Cove Daphne.

"You'll be sorry. And I bet once he disappoints you that you'll want back in the gang. Mystery-solving is in your blood," said Coolsville Daphne.

"Don't hold your breath," said Crystal Cove Daphne, shutting the door.

"She'll be back," said Fred.


	4. Fallen Angel

**Fallen Angel**

As they drove away from Daphne's house in the Coolsville version of the Mystery Machine, Fred said, "The next order of business is to visit Angel Dynamite."

"Cassidy Williams, you mean," said Velma. "If you really must."

"We have to, to see if she knows more than she's said, especially about Mr. E," said Dace, the Coolsville Velma.

"There's got to be a strong connection," Velma admitted. "Mr. E sent almost all the clues to her radio station, K-GHOUL."

"Who do you think Mr. E is, really?" asked Daphne.

"He knows about the missing kids. Most likely he's one of them, just like Cassidy turned out to be. If he was Brad Chiles he would have revealed himself to Fred by now. So my money is on Ricky Owens," said Velma.

"Like, what do we know about Ricky?" asked Shaggy.

"Cassidy was once in love with him. It said so in her diary which she showed to us, pretending Mr. E sent it. It makes me angry how much she lied to us, and how I fell for it when she asked for time to reveal it in her own way, once I caught on," said Velma.

"Ries are rad," agreed Scooby-Doo.

"Sad?" asked Daphne.

"Glad?" asked Fred.

"Plaid?" asked Shaggy.

"Rad! Rawful, revil," said Scooby.

"Oh, why didn't you say so. Bad!" said Shaggy. For an instant he looked blank, as if reacting to the word. Then he shook his head to clear it.

They drove into the parking lot of K-GHOUL, a one-person radio station at the top of a wooded hill near town. The camper truck where Cassidy slept was parked beside it.

"Something's wrong. It looks damaged," said Velma. "The door is torn halfway off its hinges."

She got out of the car and called, "Cassidy? Are you all right?"

There was no answer.

"Let's split up gang, and look for clues," said Fred. "Daphne, you and I will check the main building. Velma and Dace, check around outside. Shaggy and Scooby, you check the camper truck."

As Velma and Dace began to look carefully around the grounds and the woods, Velma asked, "Was your Shaggy ever in love?"

"He has been, on and off," said Dace. "Mostly off, since his appetite and our travels seem to get in the way of anything long-term. The most serious was a young woman named Rachel. She's now a reporter in Coolsville. Her dog, Roxanne, was Scooby's girlfriend at the same time."

"Aha!" said Velma. "No wonder it worked so well. What happened to them?"

"Our international travels started going strong, and Shaggy didn't want a long-distance relationship, so he broke up with her," said Dace.

"I see. Did she take it hard?" asked Velma.

"For a while, but now she's dating the pop star J.C. Chasez, and as far as I know she's doing fine," said Dace.

"I tried to date our Shaggy, but dog issues got between us," said Velma. "I'm over him now. I know sooner or later I'll find someone else... well, I hope so, anyway."

"There's a guy I'm interested in, but I'll have to wait until he gets out of jail," said Dace.

"Jinkies! I'm not sure I should take romantic advice from you," said Velma.

"I wouldn't date a really vicious criminal. Winsor is sweet and I'm sure he'll reform for me," said Dace.

"Watch out for trying to change the guy," said Velma. "That's part of what went wrong with me and Shaggy."

"Hey, look at this," said Dace. "A music disk stuck into the bark of a tree."

"Good clue," said Velma. "Cassidy uses CDs like throwing stars. Maybe she was fighting whoever did this."

They looked around and found scuffles but no clear footprints.

Dace pulled out the music disk and checked it over. "Hmm, there's a single by Sham the Shame and the Egyptian Kings on here: _Yummy Mummy_."

"Cassidy likes to play songs with monster themes at K-GHOUL," said Velma.

She took the disk from Dace and flipped it over. "Strange, there's something written on the other side. One word: 'NOTED'."

"Could Cassidy have written that just to mark the CD?" asked Dace.

"She knows better than to write on the recording side of a CD," said Velma. "This has to be a clue."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Shaggy and Scooby went to the camper truck.<p>

"Like, it looks like the place where Cassidy lives, which means a kitchen, which means food," said Shaggy.

"Reah! Rood," said Scooby, licking his lips.

They opened the door and came face-to-face with the Executioner. He was large and powerful, and looked dangerous in his face-concealing hood. In his right hand was a headsman's axe.

"Zoinks! Run!" cried Shaggy.

They ran completely around the truck twice with the Executioner after them. Then they ducked inside and came out disguised as two medieval ladies-in-waiting.

"Oh Mr. Executioner, I just love a man with big, strong muscles," said Shaggy in a gushy falsetto voice.

"Re roo," said Scooby, also attempting a falsetto.

"What are you doing here?" asked the Executioner in a deep, angry voice.

"We're ladies in waiting," said Shaggy. "So we're, like, waiting. But go right on in. The King would like a word with you."

"What are you doing here?" the Executioner asked again.

Without waiting for an answer he pushed them both inside the camper truck and slammed the door. Then he pushed the camper truck so hard that it began to roll rapidly down the hill.

The two inside tried to push open the door, but the hard slam had jammed it shut.

"Rhelp! Rhelp!" called Scooby.

Daphne and Fred rushed out of the studio and jumped into the Mystery Machine. As a perfect team, Fred backed the van after the rolling camper truck while Daphne tossed a rope with a grappling hook and caught the bumper of the other vehicle. Fred's expert driving pulled the other car back just before it went over a cliff.

"Jinkies! What's happening?" asked Velma, running up with Dace.

"Like, we nearly lost our heads to the Executioner!" said Shaggy.

"Reah, the Rexecutioner," said Scooby.

With the rest of the gang pushing and Fred in the Mystery Machine pulling, they got the camper truck back onto flat ground. Shaggy and Scooby opened a window and crawled out.

"Like, why didn't the old disguise routine work?" asked Shaggy. "It works almost every time."

"Revery rime," said Scooby.

"Maybe the monsters are smarter in this world?" asked Velma.

"Anyway, there was no sign of Cassidy in there," said Shaggy. "Did anyone else find her?"

"No," said Daphne. "There was nobody in the studio."

"We found a clue, this CD, but no Cassidy," said Velma. "I hope she got away safely."


	5. Clown Town

**Clown Town**

"Like, who do you think this Executioner is?" asked Shaggy.

"Possible suspects include Mr. E, Ed Machine, or someone working for Professor Pericles," said Velma.

"Mr. E? But he was the one who got us here to solve the Executioner case," said Daphne.

"It's been known to happen that the person who calls us in is the villain, trying to throw off suspicion," said Dace.

"It happens pretty often," said Fred.

"Once someone dressed like that gave me a message from Mr. E at the Royal Knights Faire," Velma said.

"Zoinks, that's suspicious," said Shaggy.

"And Mr. E and Cassidy have had a falling out," said Velma. "She told us she didn't care if we gave our disk piece to him or to Pericles."

"Disk piece?" asked Daphne.

"Long story," said Velma. "Pericles, Mr. E, and Mayor Jones all wanted them; they're a key to finding a treasure. Professor Pericles had one, and the other was probably lost in the confusion when a cave was flooded."

"What about Pericles?" asked Fred. "He seems like a good suspect for the Executioner."

"He's a parrot, so he can't be the Executioner himself," said Velma. "He's done a monster in a costume, but it was all flowing robes that he flew around in."

"Rushed roo rard," said Scooby-Doo.

"Yeah," said Shaggy. "That dude pushed too hard to be a parrot."

"But it could be Ed Machine, working for either Pericles or Mr. E," said Velma.

"Who's Ed Machine?" asked Fred.

"He's the CEO of Destroido Corporation, but he's also the henchman of Mr. E. He's brought us messages and clues from E," said Velma.

"He's disappeared from his home, right?" asked Daphne. "He's most likely a victim of Pericles, not working for him."

"Yes, but it's possible Pericles brainwashed him. He knows the formula for a chemical that makes people so crazy with love so they'll do anything," said Velma.

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "That's terrible."

"Rove raves," said Scooby.

"I watched him make a batch of antidote, so I know how to make it," said Velma. "I'll give you some, just in case."

Dace said, "I think I've figured out that message on the CD. It's run together – 'NOT ED' instead of 'NOTED'. Cassidy is saying it's not Ed Machine."

"Then who could it be?" asked Fred.

"Like, I don't know, but Scoob and I can't think on an empty stomach," said Shaggy. "I want to try that dessert place I saw when we drove by downtown today: Fruitmeir's."

"Ruitmeir's" echoed Scooby, smacking his lips.

"Probably a good choice," said Velma. "My Shaggy and Scooby liked it a lot."

They drove up in front of the place, where a long line was forming.

Just as they were heading for a parking spot in front of a building, a clown-car hot rod shaped like a baby carriage cut into the space. In the car was a huge masked clown wearing a baby outfit.

"He's back!" one of the people in line shouted. "Run for your lives!"

The crowd scattered.

"My mama won't let me eat this stuff because she don't know what's in it and it might be bad for babies. Waah, waah! That makes me sad, and when the Crybaby Clown gets sad other people get hurt bad!" said the Clown.

He pulled a baby bottle off of an ammunition band around his chest, and shook it until it glowed green. Then he threw it. A second later there was an explosion that blew out the glass windows in the front of the store.

The Crybaby Clown pulled out fast in his clown car.

"Let's follow him!" Fred said.

"Wait, Fred," said Daphne. "We have to make sure nobody was hurt."

They found another clown inside. Franklin Fruitmeir lay on the ground, his makeup smeared and his face scratched from the broken glass.

"Another monster attack on Fruitmeir's," he gasped. "It's a good thing I have insurance."

"We'll call for an ambulance," said Daphne. She dialed 911 on the phone on the counter.

As they drove away, Fred said, "Fruitmeyer may have done it himself for the insurance."

"How?" asked Velma. "He was attacked."

"All it takes is a few seconds out of sight and anyone can change costumes. He could have sneaked in the back and pretended to be hurt," said Fred.

"I don't think that's very likely, Fred," said Daphne.

"You know it's most likely the least likely suspect," Fred answered. "Anyway, the guy is wrecking the town. We have to stop him."

There were sounds of other explosions in the distance.

"I'm sure you can," said Velma. "My gang is scattered and discredited to our parents. It will be up to you guys."

"We can do it," said Fred.

Just then Velma's cell phone rang. "Velma, this is Mr. E. I have an offer for you. Work for me for a while and I will help you get your old gang back."

"Will you also send the others back to their home dimension?" asked Velma.

"I'll throw that in as part of the deal, once the Executioner case is solved," said Mr. E.

"What kind of work?" asked Velma.

"Missions to keep Pericles getting all the disk pieces. That would be disastrous for Crystal Cove, I assure you," said Mr. E.

"It's a deal," said Velma.

"Don't do it," said Dace. "I don't trust him."

"I don't either, but it's our best chance of getting more information," said Velma.

"I'll send a car for you," said Mr. E. "This deal comes with martial-arts and stealth training, which you will be needing on the missions or if you run into the Executioner."

"Speaking of the Executioner, he attacked Cassidy Williams at the radio station today," said Velma.

"I have spoken with her and she is safe," said Mr. E. "Not with me, as I offered, but she is safely in hiding."

"Do you know anything about the Crybaby Clown?" Fred asked.

"I never heard of him until today. He suddenly started attacking everything in Crystal Cove."

"Nothing to do with you, either of these cases?" asked Dace.

"I'm not responsible for them, if that's what you mean," said Mr. E. "Velma, your car should be pulling up any moment. Your sparring partner will be in the back seat."

"Sparring partner?" asked Velma.

"You'll see in a moment," said Mr. E. "I trust you two will put aside any past differences to work for a common cause."

Velma left the Mystery Machine and approached the car. The back door opened and Velma looked inside. She stopped for a moment, taken aback.

"Hot Dog Water?" she asked.

"In the flesh, V," said Hot Dog Water. "Mr. E got me out of jail on parole. Can we let bygones be bygones?"

"You've been my worst enemy at school, and then you did that Manticore business..." said Velma.

"I've had enough of fighting," said Hot Dog Water. "I'm willing to give it a rest if you are. I went too far with the Manticore, I admit. People got hurt. I'll never do anything like that again, all right?"

"All right," said Velma, with a tense smile. She offered a hand to shake, and got into the car. They drove away.

"I think we owe it to Velma to make our best effort to bring back the rest of her gang," said Fred.

"I agree," said Daphne. "I hate that she has to work with that scheming Mr. E. If she had her Shaggy, Scooby, and Fred back, maybe she wouldn't have to."

"Rhybaby Rown?" asked Scooby. "Rexecutioner?"

"We'll have to solve those cases too, before more people get hurt. But the local gang gets the credit, so they can re-establish themselves with Crystal Cove and their parents," said Dace.

"Like, to get the credit, they'll have to be back," said Shaggy.

"I have a plan for that," said Fred. "You and Scooby will be the bait."

"Rait? Roh-oh," said Scooby-Doo.


	6. Recovery

**Recovery**

"Here's what you need to do, Shaggy..." said Fred.

A short time later, Shaggy made a call from a remote phone booth outside of Crystal Cove.

"Hi, Mom? This is Shaggy. Like, I got some leave and I went and got Scooby. Is it all right if we come back for a short visit?"

Paula Rogers said, "It is most certainly not all right. Dragemoff's Farm for Wayward Animals shouldn't have released Scooby to you. And you shouldn't be getting leave so soon. I want you take Scooby right back."

"Like, sure Mom, but I got kind of lost. Could you give me directions?" asked Shaggy.

"Where are you? Stay right there and we'll send people to get you," said Paula Rogers.

Shaggy gave them the location.

"Well, we have half the information now," said Fred when Shaggy told him how the call went. "Dace, can you find Dragemoff's Farm for Wayward Animals?"

The other Velma wasn't with them, but they were still using the nickname for their Velma to avoid confusion.

"Sure, let me check the net," said Dace. She had a laptop with a working internet connection, borrowed from the Jones house. "Good luck for us. It's only a couple of miles northeast of here."

"Like, not so good luck. I see a farm truck in the distance, coming this way fast," said Shaggy.

"He must have believed your parents and not checked if Scooby was still there," said Daphne.

Here's where the bait part comes in," said Fred. "Let him chase the two of you, and while he's distracted we'll raid the farm and get the other Scooby free."

"Like, what if the military school guys come after us too, while you're gone?" asked Shaggy.

"Even better," said Fred. "You're both wearing the tracers I gave you. If you get captured they'll take you back to the base, and we can find it easily. But try not to get captured. I think the other Scooby will know where his Shaggy is."

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "What if they shoot at us?"

"Rot a rery rafe plan, Rhred," said Scooby.

"It was the best I could do," said Fred.

"The farmer's almost here. Better get out and start running," said Dace.

* * *

><p>As luck would have it, they found Scooby-Doo sneaking out under the electric fence. With the farmer gone and the farmer's wife inside the house making lemonade, they were able to rescue Scooby without incident.<p>

"Boy am I glad to see rou," said this Scooby. As Velma had said, he was much more understandable than his counterpart. "Where's Rhaggy?"

"That's what we need to ask you," said Fred. "Do you know the name of the military school where they sent him?"

"I do," said Scooby. "Barnstow Military Academy."

"Great!" said Fred. "Now we just need to pick up Scooby and Shaggy, and then we'll go get Shaggy."

"Huh?" said Scooby.

It took some explaining, but meeting his identical counterpart helped the Crystal Cove Scooby to understand what was going on. He insisted on rescuing his friend solo, so the others wouldn't get in trouble. He commandeered a tank at the military academy and soon had Shaggy free.

"We've got more names to keep straight now," said Dace. "The Coolsville Shaggy can be Norville, all right?"

"Like, if I have to," said Norville.

"Like, what about Scooby-Two for the other Scooby?" said Shaggy.

"Not so good," said Daphne. "That brings back bad memories."

"Row about Scoobert for the other me?" asked the Crystal Cove Scooby.

"Rokay," said Scoobert.

* * *

><p>Cruising around in the Mystery Machine looking for Fred bore fruit also. They found him bearded and ragged, going door to door in the nearby town of Pacific Pools, asking everyone if Brad Chiles or Judy Reeves lived there. He had been getting the door slammed in his face.<p>

"Couldn't you have done a little better detective work than that, Fred?" Dace asked.

"I can't think like a detective without the gang," Fred said. "It was the best I could do."

He was clearly an emotional and mental wreck, so they didn't press him too hard. He grasped the duplicate situation after a little while, and the Fred from Coolsville renamed himself Frederick.

Fred drove his own Mystery Machine and followed them back to Crystal Cove after Dace promised to use her detective skills to help him find his parents. They took a roundabout way back to Fred's house to avoid the spectacle of two Mystery Machines going through the center of town, so they avoided any encounters with the Crybaby Clown.

* * *

><p>When they were back at Fred's house, they brainstormed what to do next.<p>

Frederick said, "We need to restore the reputation of you guys, especially Shaggy with his parents, so they don't send him back to military school the first time they see him."

"Like, I'm all over that," said Shaggy, "But how?"

"I suggest you call the new mayor, Janet Nettles, and offer to help solve the Crybaby Clown case," said Dace. "There's been so much property damage and bad publicity for the town that she's probably desperate."

Frederick placed the call, as stand-in for the leader, since the local Fred was still too mentally shaky.

When he got off the line, he said, "She wants us to come down to City Hall tomorrow night and reassure the people that the Clown will be caught. I agreed you would do that."

"Rus, not rou?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"Yeah, you," said Scoobert.

"It needs to be the real team, not stand-ins," said Dace. "Besides, I'm allergic to clowns. I don't want to get close to him again if I can help it."

"I'll help set the traps, if you want, Fred," said Frederick.

"Traps? Why traps?" asked the dazed local Fred.

"Because the Crybaby Clown will see it as a challenge, and he's sure to show up," said Dace. "It's the perfect opportunity to trap him."

"All my trapping knowledge seems to be gone," said Fred. "We don't have our full gang. We need our Daphne."

"We can try to get her back one more time," said Daphne. "But she was pretty strong in her refusal last time we asked. She's moved on from mysteries, and she's dating Baylor Hotner.

"S-she's what?" asked Fred.

"Apparently you broke her heart when you broke the engagement to look for your parents," said Daphne.

"She's really trying to move on," said Dace.

"Well, I don't believe it," said Fred.

"Neither do I," said Frederick. "Mystery solving is in her blood. If you go over to her house and ask her, I'm sure she'll come back."

* * *

><p>Daphne refused, as the other Daphne and Dace thought she would. To add insult to injury, Baylor Hotner was there at her house and offered them autographs.<p>

"Don't worry," said Fred. "She's totally in. She just had to pretend in front of that Hotner guy. I feel my trapping powers returning. Frederick, let's make a doughnut-themed trap."

"Sure, why not?" said Frederick.

In the process of setting up the trap in the room where the meeting was to be held, they discovered the Clown had been there already and set up his own smelly diaper-bomb on the ceiling.

"This is perfect," said Fred. "We''ll defuse this and replace it with our own identical-looking one filled with quick-hardening doughnut batter, which will cover him and stick him down. Then when I give the word, Daphne will pull a cord and a giant doughnut will come down around his arms, pinning him so we can unmask him in front of everyone."

"You're sure she'll be there?" asked the local Velma. (She had returned from her latest training session with Hot Dog Water, and Dace had briefed her on everything.)

"Of course she will. I guarantee it," said Fred.

"If she doesn't, and the Clown gets loose, a lot of people could be hurt," said the Coolsville Daphne.

"Roh-roh," said Scooby-Doo.

"Nothing to worry about," said Fred.

* * *

><p>On the night of the meeting, everything was going well. Shaggy's parents seemed to buy his story that he had been made a general to work undercover in Crystal Cove and fight crime along with Scooby-Doo. People were so desperate that they would accept anything at all that offered hope of stopping the terrorist monster.<p>

From the back of the room came a screeching noise as the Crybaby Clown dragged his fingernails across a blackboard.

"You know how I make a living," said the Clown. "I'm a bad clown. Mystery Incorporated won't find me as easy to stop as Redbeard's Ghost or Mano Tiki Tia. So I have a proposition for ya. Pay me one million dollars and I go away for good. Otherwise...'

"Sounds like a fine offer to me," said Sheriff Bronson Stone. "I'll pass the hat."

"You're not wrecking the town on my watch," said Shaggy, still into his general role.

"Oh yeah? Well, look up there!" said the Clown. He pointed to the diaper bomb.

The crowd started to panic, but Fred was cool. "Do your worst. In fact, I'll do it for you."

Fred pushed a button and the diaper bomb swung down and dropped a load of sticky doughnut dough all over the Crybaby Clown.

"Now Daphne! Pull the cord!" said Fred.

For a moment, nothing happened. The Clown began to eat himself free. Then Daphne ran to the cord and pulled it, and the giant doughnut dropped down, pinning the Clown's arms just as planned.

Fred and the gang moved forward.

"Now let's see who the Crybaby Clown really is." He pulled off the Clown's mask, and they all exclaimed in chorus, "Baylor Hotner?"

"Just as I suspected," said Velma (who had been briefed by Dace). "He was rehearsing for a new movie part. He couldn't help but boast on his Facebook page: 'I'm doing something new, not another Dusk movie. Watch this space. You'll laugh, you'll cry, when you see my amazing new role'."

"That's right," said Baylor Hotner. "I was perfecting my part, and I would have gotten an Oscar, too, if it wasn't for you meddling kids."

Daphne Blake came into the room. "Hi, Mom and Dad. Sorry I'm late. Did I miss anything? Oh, Baylor! What have you done?"

The other Daphne, the one who had pulled the cord, slipped into the shadows.

"We could have gone off together," said Baylor. "I would have been a superstar and you would have been my sweet small-town girlfriend, if you and your friends hadn't ruined it."

Daphne turned on the others. "How could you do this to Baylor?"

"But... he's a villain," said Fred in shock. "All the property damage and injuries he caused..."

"He would never have hurt me, would you, Baylor?" said Daphne.

"Of course not, darling," Baylor lied smoothly.

"See there?" said Daphne.

"I was hoping you would want to come back to me... I mean to the gang," said Fred.

"No," said Daphne. "I'm not coming back."

Daphne left with her parents. The police took the Crybaby Clown away, and the Mayor gave a polite speech thanking Mystery Incorporated, which everyone applauded.

The gang left the building, and met with their duplicates who were waiting in an alley outside.

"So, it wasn't my Daphne who sprang the trap," Fred said in a miserable voice. "It was you, other-world Daphne."

"I had to be prepared, just in case," said Daphne.

"You carried us, all of you from the other world," said Fred. "We won this time because of you, but what happens when you're gone? Things will never be the same. We're finished."

"Don't say that, Fred," said Velma. "We'll find a way."

"I don't see how,' said Fred.

"Rooby rooby roo," said Scooby, and it was his most mournful victory cry ever.


	7. Replacement

**Replacement**

Frederick scowled at Fred.

"I don't like your ingratitude, Mr.," he said. "When we got here, your Shaggy and Scooby were imprisoned. Our Norville and Scoobert put their lives on the line to help get them out."

"Like, we're grateful," said Shaggy, nodding his head with its military-style buzz-cut.

"Re too," said Scooby.

"Like, you're welcome," said Norville. "A myself in need is a myself indeed."

"Rikewise," said Scoobert.

Frederick said, "Velma had no one to turn to. We helped her. You were a hobo on a hopeless quest. We brought you back. Your town was being terrorized by a villain. We caught him. We gave you the credit and now you're the town heroes."

"But... we're not heroes," said Fred. "Not any more. It was all you guys."

"Deal with it. Get your act together," said Frederick. "Or fall apart. Go back out there door to door for the rest of your life, if that's what you want."

"That's a little harsh, Frederick," said the Coolsville Daphne. "Fred had been through some rough times. He found out his whole life was based on a lie."

"As far as I can tell, he rejected any help from his friends and broke up the gang. Right, Fred?" asked Frederick.

"You broke Daphne's heart," said Velma. "You didn't have to do that."

"Like, my parents would still have sent us away, but the rest was all you," said Shaggy.

"I wanted to find my real parents on my own..." said Fred.

"How's that been working out for you?" asked Dace.

"Lousy," said Fred. "I was wrong. I'm sorry."

Shaggy said, "Like, that's the first sensible thing you're said since you've returned, man. Welcome back."

"Relcome back," said Scooby-Doo. "I romised we'd get back together and stop Pericles. He's got both disk rieces."

Velma said, "What? I thought the other piece was lost in the caves."

"He got them both. He rhowed me," said Scooby. "I said we'd stop him or my name wasn't Scooby Dooby Doo."

"Rit's rot," said Scoobert.

"Like, it's officially Scoobert Dooby Doo, but close enough," said Shaggy.

Norville said. "Like, for us Dooby's just part of his catch-phrase. There's a Dooby Dooby Doo, his singing identical cousin. But our Scooby has no middle name."

"Never mind," said Velma. "The point is what are we going to do about Pericles and the pieces of the Planispheric Disk?"

"What about the missions Mr. E was going to send you on?" asked Dace.

"Velma? You're doing missions for Mr. E?" asked Fred.

"Like, what's that all about?" asked Shaggy.

"It was part of a deal to get information to get all of you back. E wants me to go to Russia and find a piece that he thinks is hidden there. Now that you're all back I don't have to go, but..."

"But you're still going?" asked Daphne.

"If I don't go, he'll send someone else and he'll end up with the piece for sure. If I go, I can get the piece for us, maybe."

"E can't be trusted," said Fred. "Everything he told us was a lie. He told us to find out what happened to the original Mystery Incorporated. He knew exactly what happened because he was one of them. It was all for his own agenda."

"I know," said Velma. "Still, his agenda may be good. He's saying that he wants to keep Pericles from getting all the pieces. If Pericles gets them, we know for sure he'll use them for evil. E says they could destroy Crystal Cove, or worse."

"But Russia, alone? Isn't that dangerous?" asked Daphne.

"I won't be alone. I have a teammate, and we're starting to hit it off pretty well," said Velma. "If the mission goes well I'd like to propose her as our replacement Daphne."

"Replacement Daphne?" asked Fred. "What do you mean?"

"We've all seen how hopeless we are without a five-member team. These guys from another world are an intact team and look how well they did on the Crybaby Clown case," said Velma. "We used to be like that."

"Nobody can replace Daphne," said Fred. "Not for me."

"Get a grip, Fred," said Frederick. "There's mystery work to be done. You can't do it without a full team. I'm sure Velma has a good person in mind."

"I do," said Velma. "But let me give her a trial on this mission before I put her name forward."

* * *

><p>While Velma was gone on her trip, Dace did internet searches to try to get a line on Brad Chiles and Judy Reeves.<p>

Dace told him, "I can't find anyone using their real names who is a possible match. They must have cover identities. But I scanned all the pictures you have and ran a program to age their faces forward about twenty years. It will take time, but image recognition software may find them. The program is running now."

Fred said, "Maybe you should age them more. It seems like it was longer, somehow."

"It can't be that much longer," said Dace. "How long ago did they have you? I thought it was around two years after they disappeared."

"I... don't ask me. The concept of time confuses me," said Fred.

"They disappeared in the late seventies, so..." Dace stared into space, her eyes losing their focus. "I lost my train of thought. Never mind, I'm sure it will come back to me. Anyway, we'll let this program run for a few days and see if anything turns up."

* * *

><p>Velma returned from her weekend trip to Russia. The mission was a flop, but they had a backup plan. Mr. E purchased the hut of Baba Yaga and had the whole thing shipped to America.<p>

At school, Velma gathered the whole gang together. "Gang, here is the person I'd like to propose as our fifth member, replacing Daphne. Here's Marcie Fleach."

The tall girl with frizzy hair walked over to them. "Hi."

"Hot Dog Water?" the others asked in chorus.


	8. Baba Yaga

**Baba Yaga**

That evening, after school, Velma told the gang, "The shipment from Russia is coming in to the docks tonight. I think we should meet it."

Marcie said, "I don't think Mr. E wants us to do that. If Curator Vronsky finds out we're searching for something in that hut, he might claim the Piece for Russia, since it wasn't officially listed in the bill of sale."

Shaggy said, "Like, do you have to do everything Mr. E tells you?"

Fred said, "You work for E. Divided loyalties are going to be an issue, aren't they, Hot Dog Water?"

"No," said Marcie. "Velma's my friend now, the only one I've got. My first loyalty is to her, and you. I'll go meet the ship with you."

Velma smiled. "Thanks, Marcie."

Frederick, the Coolsville Fred, said, "We'll stay back here at your house while you go to the docks, Fred. We don't want to confuse anyone with duplicates if we don't have to."

Dace, the Coolsville Velma, told Fred, "My computer search has turned up a possible match for your parents that I want to follow up."

Fred asked, "What is it?"

"There's a rare public picture of a couple at a book signing a couple of years ago: 'Sternum to Sternum: The True Story Behind the Hit TV Show'."

"Sternum and Sternum! They're famous trappers: they invented the Flattenhower 8000. That's so awesome – it explains why trapping is in my blood," said Fred. "Where are they?"

"They haven't been seen in public for a while," said Dace. "They retired on the proceeds of their television royalties and trap patents. I'm having no luck with an address, but I'll try to dig up an email while you're gone."

* * *

><p>At the docks, they watched as an enormous crate was unloaded from a ship. Curator Vronsky and his assistant Anna Arkadyevna were not pleased to see them.<p>

"You decadent bourgeois Americans cannot wait to get your hands on your purchase?" asked Vronsky. "Your greed knows no bounds."

"You will get what is coming to you," said Arkadyevna. "As will anyone who tampers with our precious historic heritage."

"Da, the curse of Baba Yaga will be upon all of you," said Vronsky.

"C-curse of Baba Yaga?" asked Shaggy. "Like, who is Baba Yaga?"

"A witch of Slavic folklore, said to be able to fly with a giant mortar and pestle, move her house around on chicken legs, and eat children" said Marcie.

"You know curses aren't real, don't you, Shaggy?" asked Velma.

"Like no, I don't know that" said Shaggy.

"Me reither," said Scooby-Doo.

Up on the unloading platform the crate containing the hut burst open and the hut stood up on its chicken legs and began walking toward them menacingly.

"Zoinks! See what I mean?" said Shaggy.

Before anyone could react, the hut grabbed Arkadyevna and threw her inside. It kept coming.

"Improvised trapping time. Quick, let's roll out that spool of cable," said Fred. "We'll trip it."

They unrolled a length of cable and stretched it across the monster's path, but the hut stepped nimbly over the tripwire. As it walked away down the dock it knocked over a crate.

"It's getting away! To the Mystery Machine and we'll chase it," said Fred.

Unfortunately, the mobile house seemed to hear this. Limping a little, it stepped into the parking lot and kicked the Mystery Machine onto its side before setting off down the road.

"What did it do to you, baby?" Fred said. "You will be avenged."

"It's going to take a tow truck to pull the Mystery Machine back upright," said Velma. "Let's call our backup team."

They called the other Mystery Incorporated at Fred's house and soon were on the road with them in the Coolsville copy of the Mystery Machine, following police reports that the monster had headed into the Haunted Hills.

As all of them walked up into the hills, Marcie said, "This is my first real case with you. Any investigation pointers?"

"The basics are food, running away, and traps," said Shaggy.

"And food!" said Scooby.

"Right: food, running away, traps, and food," said Shaggy.

Velma pulled Marcie away from them. "Don't listen to them. We logical types need to stick together."

"Thanks, V," Marcie said.

Velma said, "The real key is finding clues... and we just found a big one."

It was the hut of Baba Yaga, sitting on its legs in a clearing.

"That's not just a clue. It's the whole mystery," said Fred.

Velma opened the door and shined a light inside - directly on the face of Baba Yaga.

The witch cackled and came flying out on her mortar and flailing with her pestle. "You disturbed my home and for that you will receive my curse. I will eat you whole!"

"Zoinks! Run, Scoob!" said Shaggy.

Everybody ran back towards the road and the car. The witch was catching up, when a large net was thrown over her. Scoobert, Norville, Frederick, Daphne, and Dace pulled her and the flying mortar to the ground in a dog-pile.

"It's nice to have a full backup team on the job," said Frederick. "One set to run, and one set to trap."

The second string pulled back and let the Crystal Cove group take over for the unmasking.

"Now we can see who Baba Yaga really is," said the local Fred. He pulled off the mask and revealed a man with a heavy black beard.

"Curator Vronsky?" they said in chorus.

"I suspected as much," said Velma. "There had to be someone operating the hut by remote control, someone with a good angle of view to see our tripwire and to direct the robot to knock over our car."

"But why did you do it?" asked Marcie.

"I wanted to become a decadent capitalist myself, so I took the opportunity to steal and smuggle precious Faberge eggs into this country to sell on the black market," said Vronsky. "I would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for you meddling kids and your meddling doubles."

Fred asked, "Why did you come up here in the Haunted Hills?"

"I altered the legs of the hut to work mechanically under my remote control, but they were damaged at the dock, and I had to make repairs to get them walking properly again. There were too many eggs to carry away by hand. I had to have the hut."

"What did you do with Anna Arkadyevna?" asked Shaggy.

"You'll find her tied up inside. She was becoming suspicious of me and I had to kidnap her," said Vronsky.

They found Arkadyevna and untied her, and also found the secret compartment where the eggs had been hidden. Velma, Dace, and Marcie searched further and found a rosewood box. Inside it was a piece of the Planispheric Disk.

They called Sheriff Stone to come pick up Vronsky.

While they were waiting, a call came in for Marcie on the wrist video phone she carried. She went a little ways into the trees to answer it.

"This is Mr. E.; I want a report now," he told her.

"We've found Baba Yaga's hut and recovered a Disk Piece," Marcie told him.

"I want that Piece you found turned over to me. It's only in the country because I paid to get it here," E demanded.

"I'm sorry, but the new Mystery Incorporated doesn't trust you. They're going to hang unto it to keep it out of the claws of Pericles... and you," said Marcie.

"Listen to me, Hot Dog Water," said Mr. E. "Don't give your loyalty to Mystery Inc.; they aren't long for this world. Besides that, I got you paroled, and I can get it revoked. I don't think you want to be back in prison."

"I haven't done anything to violate parole," said Marcie.

"If you're as powerful as I am, you can always find something," said Mr. E. "What about your association with impersonators of Mystery Inc. who cannot provide real identification, and who have been using the credit card of the real Daphne Blake in a fraudulent manner?"

"You wouldn't," said Marcie. "They are still working on the Executioner case for you. You can't pull them into trouble."

"I haven't heard any progress on that case, and now they're teaming up to defy me," said Mr. E. "This is not looking good for their prospects of returning to their home dimension."

After Mr. E hung up, Marcie reported the conversation to the others.

"We're not turning the Piece over to him, and that's final," said Fred. "Let him do his worst."

"His worst might be me going back to jail, or going on the run," said Marcie. "Maybe all of you extra-dimensional doubles should run with me."

"We'll think of something," said Frederick. "Meanwhile, I'll stow this Piece in the Mystery Machine and set up some traps around it for safety, until we can get it to a good hiding place."

When he opened the back of the van, the Executioner was inside. The Executioner grabbed the Piece from Fredericks's hand, and threw him back so he crashed into a tree.

Before they could stop him, the monster moved behind the wheel of the Coolsville copy of the Mystery Machine and drove off.

"One good thing," Shaggy said. "E can't demand the Piece from us any more."

"Like, unless that was E," said Norville.


	9. Fred's Parents

**Fred's Parents**

Dace said, "Velma, may I borrow your laptop for a few minutes?"

"Sure, but how is that going to help?" Velma asked. "We've lost the disk piece and the Mystery Machine."

"The Mystery Machine that was stolen is ours," said Frederick. "We've had years to install custom anti-theft devices that we can operate by remote control."

"Activating web services..." said Velma. "Remote viewing... Seat-belt traps won't work because the Executioner isn't wearing his. But the hidden camera shows the disk piece is on the seat beside him. That's his first mistake."

She typed in a command and the passenger-side seat tilted up, dropping the piece into a secure compartment below.

"Now we just lock the doors, take control of the Mystery Machine, and bring him back here. The remote control feature's been used against us once or twice, but it's still worthwhile for times like these."

Soon the Mystery Machine drove itself back to them. Nobody was inside.

"Jinkies, I forgot to lock the skylight. It looks like he got out that way."

Frederick said, "Since the van's been in enemy hands, we'd better give her a thorough check for bugs and traps."

They gave it a good going over but found nothing. While they were doing this, Sheriff Stone finally showed up and they turned Curator Vronsky over to him. Anna Arkadyevna got a ride back into town with the Sheriff as well.

"Like, we'd better check out the other Mystery Machine we left at the docks, too," said Shaggy. "Who knows what bugs they put into it?"

"Reah, I don't like rugs," said Scooby-Doo. "They can rite."

"These aren't that kind of bugs, Scooby," said Marcie. "But they could give away our plans to whoever is behind the Executioner."

"Do you really think it's Mr. E?" asked Velma.

"I doubt it. He's not quite that devious. But since we want to keep the disk piece, let's not tell E for now. His threats have become bothersome," said Marcie.

They stopped by an abandoned toy factory on the way back to hide the disk in a secure place. After that, because of the danger of action by Pericles, they stopped by Velma's house and got a spray bottle of antidote to the Aphrodite potion.

They stopped by the dock to check over the other Mystery Machine and got a tow truck to set up back upright. Then they returned to Fred's house with the two vans. When they entered they immediately noticed the place had been cleaned up.

"Who's been in here?" Fred asked. "What's going on?"

"It was us," said Brad Chiles as he and Judy Reeves came down the main stairs. "We're back."

"We got your email, so we came back" said Judy. "Oh my, there are two of everyone."

"Almost everyone," said Marcie. "It's a long story."

"We'll tell ours first, then," said Brad. "The floor is open for questions."

Fred asked, "My only question is, why? Why did you stay away for so long?"

"The man who kidnapped you, the former Mayor Jones, is a dangerous man. He threatened harm against you if we got anywhere near," said Brad.

"Bodily harm, Brad," said Judy.

"You're right. Thank you, Judy. Bodily harm," said Brad.

"I guess I can understand that," said Fred. "One more question: what's my real name?"

"Your birth certificate has your name as Fredrick Herman Sternum," said Judy. "We were using an alias for our trapping work when you were born. Parents can give a child any last name they want, so that's your official name."

"Hmm, same middle name as me," said Frederick to himself.

"I'm a Sternum," said Fred with a touch of pride.

"A name to be proud of in the trapping world," said Brad. "And I hear you've been carrying on the family business."

"But, how did I end up with the same first name as my kidnapper?"

"We named you for him," said Judy. "At the time we still thought of Fred Jones as a good man."

"Oh. I see," said Fred.

"Now come into the dining room. We've made you and the gang some snacks," said Brad.

"Snacks! Like, these guys are the best," said Shaggy.

"Like, I totally agree," said Norville, the other Shaggy.

Velma whispered to Marcie, "With two Shaggys and two Scoobys, there'll be nothing left for anyone else."

That turned out to be an accurate prediction, since the two boy/dog pairs rushed to the table and gobbled up everything. The others didn't mind that much; they stood around and discussed the case.

"We have to do something about the Executioner," said Velma. "He keeps popping up and messing us around."

"Reah, rop rhe Rexecutioner," said Scoobert.

"I know a trap that would be perfect," said Brad. "What Executioner could stand up to a Kaiser Wilhelm 113 Special?"

"Excellent idea," said Fred. "Do you have any available?"

"We just happen to have brought one with us," said Judy.

"We need to figure out who he is, first," said Dace. "I suggest we visit the scenes of his previous crimes and look for clues."

"He's attacked places belonging to Destroido," said Velma. "I know of some from the news, and Mr. E may be able to give us more details."

"Do you really want to call him now?" asked Marcie. "He's going to be furious at us."

They called Mr. E anyway, and after chewing them out about the piece (which they told him was lost), he said, "There's been a new development. Dr. Benton Quest, who works for a subsidiary company of mine, has disappeared from one of our labs, where he was working on inter-dimensional experiments."

"Inter-dimensional? Was he the one who brought us here?" asked Dace.

"It was his work that went into the transporter, yes. If you don't get him back, you could be stuck here," said Mr. E.

"We'd like to come out to Destroido and look for clues," said Velma.

"It's not on the main site," said Mr. E. "It's in a remote location in case dimensional instabilities destroy everything around it."

"Zoinks! Instabilities that destroy everything?" said Shaggy.

Scoobert jumped into Shaggy's arms and Scooby jumped into Norville's arms. They each realized their mistake, hopped back down, then jumped up again into the arms of their own best friends.

The gangs followed Mr. E's directions to the remote lab, which was deep in the polluted, mutation-filled woods near the company. The place was a mess, with signs of forced entry and a struggle. Velma, Dace, and Marcie paid special attention to the equipment scattered around the room.

"It looks to me like they didn't just take Dr. Quest, but most of the dimensional portal device," said Marcie.

"But they missed a few pieces," said Velma. "I doubt they could get replacements for these integrated circuit boards in a hurry. I expect the Executioner will be back."

"It's trapping time," said Fred. "I'll set up the Kaiser Wilhelm 113 Special here in the hall, where he's bound to pass on his way in."

"I'll set a backup net trap," said Frederick. "No offense, but I don't know your parents and I don't feel like I can trust them."

"How can you say that? They're my real parents, and I have to trust them, don't I? Just like I trusted... I trusted my fake dad..." said Fred, trailing off. "All right, we'll set a backup trap."

They hid and waited for the Executioner to return. Soon they heard steps in the hall, and then the clanking sounds of the mechanical tentacles of the Kaiser Wilhelm 113 Special as they wrapped around the villain and locked around him in a tight cocoon.

They ran to check, but when they got there the Executioner clicked a button on a device he had clenched in his hand and the tentacles came loose from around him, and moved toward for the gang instead.

"Zoinks! Back up! Run!" said Shaggy.

Then the secondary trap, a simple but strong wire net, dropped from the ceiling onto the Executioner and the Kaiser Wilhelm 113 special. The Executioner flailed in the net and dropped the control when a stray tentacle struck his hand.

Fred picked up the control and turned the trapping machine off.

"Well, I guess there's no doubt about who the Executioner really is. My father," Fred said, unmasking the villain.

"Doctor Quest?" everyone said in unison.

"Let me go, you meddling kids! I have to do what Professor Pericles says. I love him," said Dr. Quest.

"It must be the Aphrodite formula," said Velma. She got the spray bottle and gave Quest a dose of the antidote.

Quest gave a gasping breath and his love-maddened expression returned to normal.

"Have you been the Executioner all this time?" asked Daphne.

"No, there have been others working for Professor Pericles who wore the costume," said Quest. "I saw a couple of them while I was a prisoner. One was a robot with a German army helmet, programmed to play back some simple phrases recorded from one of the parrot's murder victims. Another was a man with gray hair and a very strong chin."

"My real dad, Brad Chiles. I knew it," said Fred. "The way they prepared you to deal with the trap was a give-away."

"Thank you for saving me from that insidious chemical," said Dr. Quest. "I see that some of you are the parallel universe duplicates I brought here to help Mr. Owens, the owner of Destroido."

"Yes, we are," said Dace. "Do you have a way to send us back?"

"It's far easier to send you back to your own universe than to bring you here in the first place. I can give you a device that you can install in your van. If it is triggered while you are traveling at 88 miles per hour, it will return you to your home dimension."

Frederick looked around at the others. "What do you think, gang? We have a way to go home again. Should we go, or stick around to help our counterparts?"

"Stay," said Velma.

"Yeah, stay," said Shaggy.

"Reah," said Scooby.

"Go," said Fred.


	10. Dreams and Nightmares

**Dreams and Nightmares**

"What's your gripe this time, Fred?" Frederick asked, as they drove back to Fred's house in the Mystery Machine.

"This is our world, and these are our mysteries to solve," said Fred. "You should go back to your world and deal with mysteries there."

"Yours seem to be serious, and we're glad to help you for a while longer," said Daphne.

"By helping so much you're solving things too fast," said Fred. "If we hadn't solved the Crybaby Clown case so quickly he would have had more time to show his true colors and my Daphne might be back with us now."

"He might have, like, hurt her or kidnapped her," said Shaggy.

"I just want her back. No offense, Hot Dog Water, but I can't call you the new Daphne," said Fred.

"I'm not her, but I think I'm pretty good on the team," said Marcie.

"I like the ray you smell," said Scooby-Doo.

"Re roo," said Scoobert.

"My Daphne smells like a fawn dipped in honey, not like greasy pork byproducts soaking in brine. No offense, Hot Dog Water," said Fred.

Marcie's face tightened and she said nothing, but Velma said, "That was very offensive, Fred. If you insult my friend any more..."

"Let him be," said Daphne. "Fred's not only lost his love, but now he's been betrayed by his real parents as well as his fake one. He has nobody."

Fred moaned, but then he said, "I still have Mr. Trapples."

He produced from his pocket a ragged teddy-bear, dressed in a small copy of Daphne's clothes and wearing an orange-red wig.

"Is that her real hair?" Marcie asked. "How did you...?"

"I want to change the subject," said Fred.

They arrived back at the house, just in time to see a red sports-car speed away.

"There goes Brad and Judy," said Dace. "They must have figured out the game was up when we rescued Dr. Quest from being the Executioner."

"I rhear rarking," said Scooby.

They went around the house and found a pretty Cocker Spaniel with her leash tied to a stake in the back yard.

"Easy, girl," said Daphne. "Were they in such a hurry to leave that they left you behind? Your collar tag says your name is Nova. Don't worry, girl. We'll take care of you."

Nova licked Daphne's hand. Both Scooby and Scoobert came over to her, and she licked their faces.

"Awww, so cute," said Scooby. "Stay away, Roobert. She's from here."

Scoobert backed off, saying, "Rish I rould rake rou rith re, Rova."

They untied Nova and took her inside.

Dace said, "I think Fred has a point. There are too many of us and we get in each other's way. We need the two teams to be working on different things."

Velma said, "One team could be working on all the cursed treasure material we have while the other takes local cases, like this one in the newspaper where Horbert Feist, the bank manager, ran his car into his bank and the building caught fire. He said a monster in his dreams made him do it."

Frederick asked, "What kind of material have you got on the cursed treasure?"

Velma said, "There are books and pictures in the Darrow family archives. The Darrow family was a mystery-solving group that found one of the pieces of the Planispheric Disk. It lead to their downfall, literally."

"Rownfall?" asked Scoobert.

"Their whole mansion was hit by an earthquake and went underground. We explored it and found old Danny Darrow still alive. After trying to kill us with traps for a while, he gave up and let us have the piece. Pericles stole it from us," said Velma.

"Like, these pieces are dangerous?" asked Norville.

"Maybe, if you don't know what you're doing," said Velma.

"And we know?" Shaggy asked.

"No, we don't," said Velma.

"The archives sound like a good lead," said Daphne. "We should look them over."

They retrieved the chest of archives from its hiding place in Fred's house, and began to look through them. There were old photographs, sketches, and books, most of which were in Spanish.

"Interesting," Dace said. "These books have been stamped in the back with 'Property of the Burlington Library'."

"Like, they've been overdue for decades, right? Zoinks! Think of the fines," said Shaggy.

Velma started looking things up on her laptop. "There's an old Burlington Library in the mountains near town. There may be more books like these there."

"Let's split up," said Fred. "You extra-dimensional guys go to the library while the local gang takes on Feist."

Velma said, "May I go with the Library group? I could swap places with Dace. I've studied this stuff before and I know what to look for."

Dace said, "I was looking forward to going to the Library, but you make a good point."

Velma said, "Fred, I think it would be good for you to come, too. Getting out of town for a bit would help you get over all the things that have happened. Frederick, would it be all right if Fred swaps with you?"

"Sure, I guess," Frederick said.

"Are you sure I need to?" asked Fred.

"Yes!" said the rest of his team in chorus.

Velma and Fred drove up into the mountains with the rest of the Coolsville team.

"There it is," said Velma. "It's a big place."

"Spooky, too," said Norville.

They knocked on the door and the man who opened it gave them a cold smile. "My name is Dan Fluunk. Welcome to the Burlington Library. I wasn't expecting visitors today."

Fred said, "We just decided to come at the last minute. Is that a problem?"

"Not at all. The Library is open to the public 24/7, 365 days a year. You can stay here for the rest of your lives."

Fluunk showed them around, giving them a tour of the kitchen and bad-tempered cook Don Fong, the gallery with portraits of Oswald P. Burlington and his mystery-solving group (including his orangutan Mr. Peaches), other portraits of mystery-solvers of the past (all four people and one animal), and the book archive itself.

Velma decided to stay up reading books, Daphne retired to her room to take a shower, and Fred headed to his room for an early night.

Norville and Scoobert went back to the kitchen for a snack. A strange-smelling smoke was coming from the kitchen fire. They saw Don Fong chopping meat with a cleaver, and they were about to ask him for some food, when he turned red and morphed into a hideous spider-like monster.

"Zoinks! Run, Scoob!" said Norville.

They ducked out the door and came back in a moment later. Norville had disguised himself as Oswald P. Burlington, and Scoobert was disguised as Mr. Peaches.

"Bad spider-monster Fong," said Norville. "I won't have you disturbing our guests. Go back to your room."

"Oook, ook, ook," said Scoobert. "Rister Reaches!"

They were not sure it would work, but it did. The monster retreated out the door.

"Like, I'm glad the disguise trick worked that time," said Norville.

They heard a cry from the library, and ran into Velma coming the other way.

"I saw Burlington and Mr. Peaches," said Velma. "They came through the library on a ghost train."

"We saw a huge spider monster," said Norville. "Like, we did a disguise trick and it worked."

"It did? Interesting," said Velma. "I think these are hallucinations. Lucky for you, because that means they behave as you expect monsters to behave."

"Like, I wonder if Daphne and Fred are all right?" asked Norville.

"Ret's ro rheck," said Scoobert.

They knocked on the door of Fred's room and when nobody answered they went in and found a surprising sight. Fred and Daphne were asleep, cuddled together on a couch in front of the fire.

"I'd say it was a good thing that Fred and Daphne are getting back together," said Velma, "But..."

"Like, it's your Fred and our Daphne!" said Norville.

"Fred, Daphne, wake up!" Velma called.

They woke with a start, and the two of them looked at each other, and blushed.

"Daphne? I thought you were my Daphne," said Fred.

Daphne said, "And I thought you were my Fred."

"Those were wonderful kisses," said Fred in a dreamy voice.

"Please, let's forget all about them. The other Fred and Daphne would never forgive us," said Daphne.

She turned to the others, "It's not what it looks like. I was attacked by a gorgon-like monster when I got out of the shower and I went to Fred's room for protection. For some reason we weren't thinking clearly and we..."

"Never mind," said Velma. "There's a hallucinogenic chemical in the air, and I think I know what it is."

They began to plot together how to trap the villain who was trying to scare them away.


	11. The New Caretaker

**The New Caretaker**

The gang watched as Dan Fluunk was taken away by the police, happy to be going to a warmer place at last.

"I guess we'll have to leave, too," Velma said. "Too bad, I was just getting into the books."

Don Fong came up to Velma and gestured for her to follow. She let him conduct her to a telephone in the kitchen, and she picked up the receiver.

"This is Dean Fenk from Darrow University. My very good friend, Don Fong, told me in his unspecified language that the caretaker has been arrested."

"Yes, that's true. He was trying to frighten guests away so the library would be forced to close," Velma said.

"There's a provision in the will of Oswald P. Burlington that if the library ever has to close then everything goes to Darrow University," said Fenk.

"Oh. I guess you'll send someone to claim the property. We were hoping to do some research here," said Velma.

"I've decided to leave the place open, just as it is. I'll send someone I can spare from the faculty to be the new caretaker," said Fenk.

"Like Professor Hatecraft?" Velma asked hopefully. "We could really use his help."

"I said someone I could spare," said Fenk. "I can't spare him, not while his 'Charu Garu Goshakon' song royalties are still pouring in from Japan. He might have to do interviews for the press."

"Should we leave and come back after the caretaker has settled in?" Velma asked.

"No, it's fine to stay. I trust my dear Fong to keep an eye on things for me," said Fenk. "The new caretaker will arrive this afternoon."

The gang spent the morning going through books in the library. They found one with details of the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery, the mystery-solving group founded by Burlington, which was successful for decades.

"They're a lot like us," said Daphne. "They traveled around the world solving mysteries and having fun."

"Most other groups weren't that lucky," Velma said. "They got caught up with infighting and corruption, and before long they fell victim to terrible fates."

"Rerrible rates?" asked Scoobert.

"Zoinks!" said Norville. "Like, it's lucky we're such good friends."

"Speaking of that, are you two sure you want to keep sitting so close together?" Velma asked Crystal Cove Fred and Coolsville Daphne. "You can blame last night on the terror wood, but if you fall for each other for real it can't end well. You're from different worlds."

Fred said, "Daphne's just helping me practice so I can relate better to my Daphne."

"Is that right?" Velma asked.

"Sure, like when I asked her how my Daphne would react if I kidnapped her, and took her whole bed with her in it out to the beach for a romantic picnic breakfast," said Fred.

"I told him I didn't think it was a good idea," said Daphne. "She might be touched by the expression of feelings, but the kidnapping in her sleep would just make her furious."

"I've got to find some other way, like maybe trapping myself with her overnight in a net, like what happened on our first date," said Fred.

"Just talk to her," Daphne said. "She may be getting lonely now, without Baylor Hotner and without her friends."

A woman barged into the room. "So it's you I have to thank for having to come up to this cold dump in the middle of nowhere."

"Regina Wentworth? You're the caretaker here now?" Velma asked.

"I am, only because that rotten old Dean Fenk made me. What an oldy oldster she is. Now I have to babysit you kids who broke my Todd."

"You mean that cardboard cutout figure from your Dusk van?" Fred said. "We used him as bait in a trap for a villain. It was a good cause, even though the trap didn't quite work."

Regina gave an angry growl and turned away. "I can't stand the sight of you kids, and there's nothing to do around here but look at books, which I hate."

"It's a good quiet place to write," Velma suggested. "You could start a new line of books, since the Dusk series seems to be playing out. Baylor Hotner was even jumping ship on the next movie to try to do a clown role instead; except he ended up in jail."

"Hmmph!" said Regina, and she stalked off.

"Like, she's quite a character," said Norville.

"Rangry rady," said Scoobert.

"Honestly, it couldn't happen to a nicer person," said Velma.

"By the way, what is this 'Dusk' series you were talking about?" Daphne asked.

"A novel series with romantic, sparkly vampires," said Velma.

"Like Silverlight? I loved those," said Daphne.

"Maybe that's your world's equivalent," Velma says. "Our Daphne loved the Dusk books, so you might like them, too."

"I've had enough of vampires for a while," said Daphne. "I was nearly a vampire bride myself."

"A real vampire's bride?" Velma asked skeptically.

"Of course not, but I'm not sure what the fake one was planning to do with me. Maybe murder, maybe kidnapping and brainwashing. Anyway, I would have disappeared," said Daphne with a shudder.

"Don't worry, Daphne. You're safe now," said Fred, putting an arm around her. Daphne let him, leaning back into his arm.

Velma raised her eyebrows at this, but said nothing more since she had already warned them.

"What will we do about Regina Wentworth? Like, she's not going to make it pleasant for us to stay here," said Norville.

"I think we should wrap up here. I'm going to call our guys in town," said Fred.

He called the local Shaggy, "How's it going there with the dream-monster case?"

"Like, all done with that one," said Shaggy. "It was the bank manager all along, projecting dreams on others for revenge for a bad role-playing game years ago. Hot Dog Water helped us build a brain wave scanner and we caught him right away. His brain patterns didn't match the other victims."

"Anything else going on?" Fred asked.

"This, like, creepy curiosity show came into town. Now this monster called the Hodag from the show may be running loose and attacking people. They say it eats dogs, too."

"Reats rogs!" said Scoobert, jumping into Norbert's arms.

"We're coming back there," said Fred. "Research here is pretty much a dead end."

"Are you, like, feeling any better, Fred old pal?" Shaggy asked.

"Much better," Fred said.

They got their stuff together. While they were packing the car, a book smashed out through an upper window and landed at their feet.

"Who threw that?" Velma asked, picking up the book.

"Like, Wentworth, I guess. She sure doesn't like us much, huh Scoob?" asked Norville.

"Rot rat rall," said Scoobert.

"It seems to be a user's manual for the Planispheric Disk," said Velma. "She did us a real favor."

"By accident, probably," said Fred. "Let's go."

From the window above, the ghost of Mr. Peaches watched them take the book he threw. "Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches! Nibiru!"

As Fred was starting up the Mystery Machine, a call came in from Shaggy.

"Guys, you've got to come back right away! The Hodag has got Nova!" Shaggy said.

"Ro no! Rit rill reat Rova!" said Scoobert.

They took off for town as fast as they could.


	12. The Hodag

**The Hodag**

The (mainly) Coolsville gang followed the directions Shaggy gave them and arrived at a traveling show that was parked on the street: the Traveling Cabinet of Curiosities. The (mainly) Crystal Cove gang was standing outside it, and there was another man, sitting on the curb with his head in his hands.

"What happened, gang?" the Coolsville Daphne asked.

"We were following up a lead on a robbery," Marcie said. "Daphne's sister, Daisy, was attacked and robbed in her home by a monster that looked like an exhibit here, the Hodag of Horror."

"My prime exhibit," explained the man sitting on the curb. "I thought I had it under control, but it's a sneaky monster."

"This is Gene Shepherd, the owner of the show," said Shaggy.

"Was Daisy hurt?" asked Fred (who had been subbing on the Coolsville team for the Burlington Library investigation).

"She's all right," said Dace (who had been subbing on the Crystal Cove team for the Dreamweaver investigation). "She just lost a ruby necklace and one with a bell."

"Like, what did you find out about the monster, and what happened to Nova?" asked Norville.

"I made a sketch of the monster from Daisy's description, and Shaggy and Scooby recognized it from what they thought was a fake stuffed monster in this exhibit, that they saw earlier in the day," said Dace.

"The most, like, cheesy fake monster I've ever seen," said Shaggy.

"My monster isn't fake, and it's definitely not cheesy," said Gene Shepherd.

"We came back here to investigate," said Frederick (the Coolsville Fred, subbing on the local team).

"Rit was rorrible. The ronster came to life," said Scooby.

"It was fast, and it could climb and jump around like nothing human," said Shaggy.

"Rhat rappened to Rova?" asked Scoobert.

"Like, we brought her with us," said Shaggy. "Big mistake."

"The monster noticed her when the little bell on her collar rang. It grabbed her up in its mouth and ran off with her before we could stop it," said Frederick.

"Ro no!" said Scoobert.

"We've got to save her before she gets, like, eaten," said Shaggy.

Scooby and Scoobert both whimpered.

"Is there a plan?" Fred asked Frederick.

"I may have something," said Marcie. "My amateur chemistry skills let me put together a device to detect organic odors. Maybe we can use it to track the Hodag."

She turned it on and said, "I'm picking up a strong cheese odor around here."

Gene Shepherd sprang up. "No! There's no cheese here. Go away and investigate somewhere else."

He went inside the Traveling Cabinet and locked the door. Automatic shutters slammed everything closed.

"Suspicious?" Fred asked Shaggy.

"Very suspicious," said Shaggy. "But he hasn't got Nova."

Norville said, "Scooby and Scoobert, put your noses on the case. Do you smell anything that would lead us to the Hodag?"

The dogs sniffed around outside on the street.

"Rheeses, different kinds," said Scooby. "Ramembert and Swiss."

"Rand rheddar," said Scoobert.

"That reminds me of something," said Frederick. "An invitation was dropped by your house, Fred. It's a welcome home party for your real parents, Brad Chiles and Judy Reeves."

"I'm not going," said Fred.

"I don't blame you," said Frederick. "But it's at the Blake mansion."

"It would be a good opportunity to speak to your Daphne and get her back," said the Coolsville Daphne.

"Rave Rova rirst," said Scoobert.

"Of course. That's really why I mentioned the invitation," said Frederick. "The party features a cheese buffet by the famous 'Something Cheesy This Way Comes'. With all the cheese smells, it may be a good place to start looking for Nova."

They drove to the cheese store and the local gang went in to look around while the out-of-town gang prepared traps. Marcie deployed her odor scanner again, but Scooby was the first to scent Nova. They found her muzzled and caged in a room full of strong-smelling Limburger cheese.

Scooby unlocked the cage and unmuzzled Nova. She jumped up and licked his face, causing her bell to ring again.

A moment later the Hodag of Horror was in the room, going for Nova. Scooby put Nova on his back and ran for the front door.

The Hodag followed, right into a large cage the other gang had constructed around the door. They let Scooby and Nova out the back, and slammed down the front and back cage sides, locking the monster in.

"Now let's see who the Hodag really is," said Frederick.

They unmasked the monster to find the assistant, Roberto. Then they unmasked Roberto to find a bell-trained thieving monkey.

"I just wanted to steal a 500-year-old cheese from Mr. Shepherd," said Mr. Fussbuster. "Then I could have retired to the Netherlands, where they really appreciate cheese. I would have gotten away with it, if weren't for the bells, bells, bells! Roberto is obsessed with them, which is why he took your dog."

Fussbuster and Roberto the monkey were taken away by the police, with the monkey ringing bells madly in the back of the police car.

* * *

><p>The Crystal Cove Mystery Inc., and Nova, attended the welcome-back party that night. They stayed out of sight of Brad and Judy, only approaching Daphne after she had given Judy back her old Mystery Incorporated locket.<p>

"Daphne, how are you doing?" Fred asked.

"Not so well. I tried to visit Baylor Hotner at the jail and he spoke just horribly to me. I miss you... I mean I miss everyone in the gang," said Daphne.

"Would you like to come back?" Fred asked.

"I'd like that," said Daphne.

"And you and me?" Fred asked.

"Let's just be friends," said Daphne a bit too quickly.

"Gee, Daph, this is great. Just like the other Daphne said, all I had to do was talk to you," said Fred.

"You've been sharing private details of our relationship with my copy?" asked Daphne, and her voice had an edge to it. "What else have you been doing?"

"Nothing, except once, under the influence of..." Fred started to say.

"He means once under the influence of terror wood he had a dream about kissing you," said Velma, before Fred could spoil everything.

"Let's take it slow with that kind of thing," said Daphne. "If we ever do again, I mean. Which we won't..."

"Relcome back, Raphne," said Scooby.

"Like yeah, Daphne, we missed you," said Shaggy.

They went out and joined the other gang, waiting in the parking lot.

Marcie asked, "With Daphne back, do you still need me in the gang?"

"Well..." said Fred, "It's always been a five-person team."

"That's completely unfair," said Velma.

"Marcie, you can join our team if you like. We've been more than five before, with Scrappy."

The Crystal Cove team shuddered at the mention of the name.

"If Marcie goes, I'm going too," said Velma. "Dace, how about you? Do you want to stay and hold my place for a while until these guys come to their senses?"

"I don't mind staying," said Dace. "Shaggy and I have been hitting it off pretty well."

"So Dace, want to go out for a pizza with me? I'm starved since the party didn't have a cheese buffet. Like, I'd be starved anyway," said Shaggy. "Scooby and Nova can double-date with us."

"Thanks Shaggy, I'd love to," said Dace.

"Oy, all this cross-universe dating," said Velma to herself.

"We're from the same universe, V," said Marcie. "Like to go out to dinner with me?"

"Sure, Marcie," said Velma. ""How about Chinese?"

"If we make sure the noodles don't have any gluten," said Marcie.

As they were pulling out, the Traveling Cabinet of Curiosities drove up. Shepherd jumped out of the driver's cab and ran up to them with something in a sack.

"The cheese said I had to give it to you," said Shepherd with tears in his eyes. He turned away and ran back to the traveling van, and drove it away.

They pulled out from the sack a large, perfect wheel of cheese. Scooby couldn't resist taking a huge bite.

He drew back saying, "Wow, rhat's sharp."

"Like, let me have some, buddy. I dig sharp cheese," said Shaggy.

"No, I mean rhis is sharp," said Scooby, pulling out a flat piece of metal shaped like a slice of pie with a circle at the tip.

"A piece of the Planispheric Disk!" said Velma.

"Wow, what luck," said Fred. "Someone up there must like us."

"Or somerun down there," said Scooby.

"Rooby Rooby Roo!" said Scoobert nervously.


	13. Separation for Velma and Marcie

**Separation**

The next day, the two Mystery Inc. groups were heading out from Fred's house for more investigation. As before, the Coolsville gang was hitting the books to find out all they could about the Planispheric Disk, this time at the local library. Velma and Marcie were going with them, since Marcie was no longer needed as a replacement Daphne will the local gang.

The Crystal Cove gang was called in to their City Hall office (aka a store-room) to help the Mayor with a haunting at the Pretenso Art Gallery. Dace, the Coolsville Velma, was going with them.

The Coolsville Daphne said, "Now that the local Daphne is back in the gang, I need to use my middle name to tell us apart. Call me Anne."

"Good," said Dace. "Now I'm not the only one using a middle name."

Marcie got a call on her cell phone. She moved away from the others to take it. She went pale as the deep voice on the other end of the phone yelled at her. Without a word she ran outside and started walking down the sideway.

"Marcie, wait!" Velma called, running after her. "What's wrong?"

"It was Mr. E, and he doubts my loyalty. He's going to fire me, and working for him is part of my parole."

"Why is he playing hardball now?" asked Velma.

"It seems he's angry that we had a piece of the Disk just dropped into our laps, in that cheese from Mr. Shepherd. The old Mystery Incorporated got together last night: Mr. E, Fred's parents, and even Cassidy Williams, he says," Marcie said.

"Even Cassidy?" asked Velma.

"I'm not sure. The man lies as easily as he breathes. But Angel Dynamite was working for him and spying on you for a long time," said Marcie.

"I'm not saying we should trust her. She betrayed us. But I thought she had turned against Mr. E," said Velma.

"He says they're all worried that we have two pieces of the Disk and Pericles has two. They don't think we can protect our pieces from him," said Marcie.

"So turn them over to them, when they're possibly in league with Pericles themselves? They'd be a complete team again with him, just like our two teams, but an evil version," said Velma.

"I'm supposed to persuade all of you to hand over the pieces, or steal them," said Marcie.

"And if you don't?" asked Velma.

"I lose my parole and go back to prison," said Marcie.

"For how long?" asked Velma.

"I assaulted and kidnapped several people with the Manticore suit. I could be looking at a life sentence, especially if E uses his influence against me," said Marcie.

"That's not fair! You've reformed," said Velma. "And how can they punish a minor that harshly?"

"Ask Mary Anne Gleardan that, or Flim-Flam," said Marcie.

"The legal system is Crystal Cove is a mess, just like its policing," said Velma.

"I won't turn against you. You've stood by me, even when the gang was ready to kick me out. I... really lo-like you, V," said Marcie.

"I like you too, Marcie," said Velma.

"I'm going to have to go on the run," said Marcie. "I've been working on a fight-or-flight suit just in case, based on re-purposed Manticore technology. Mr E and the police can't stick me back in prison if they can't catch me."

"I wish you didn't have to go," said Velma.

"You could come with me," said Marcie.

"Marcie, I can't. I have family, friends, and mysteries to solve here," said Velma.

"Then this is goodbye, V," said Marcie. "But stay in touch. This card has my encrypted email site."

She handed Velma the card, and when Velma took it she gave her a fierce hug.

"Wow, you're strong, Marcie," said Velma.

"Thanks, V, I have to be now," said Marcie. She let go of the hug and walked away.

* * *

><p>Velma returned to the others and told them what had happened.<p>

"Still want to swap places?" asked Dace. "You only did it to keep Marcie company, right?"

"I still want to work on the Disk research. That will take my mind off things," said Velma.

"All right, I'll stick with this group for now, and with Shaggy," said Dace.

* * *

><p>They regrouped later, around lunch time.<p>

"How goes the investigation?" asked Frederick.

"Not good," said Dace. "We went to Arrtwerks, the working studio for Randy Warsaw, and tried to fit in. We didn't."

"Randy Warsaw?" asked Norville. "Like, who's he?"

"The artist whose statue, 'Trash', came to life last night and attacked his emo rock band singer, and turned her into a golden statue."

"Jinkies," said Velma. "And what happened at the studio?"

"Warsaw saw us, and tried to make us over into his artistic puppets," said Dace.

"I was going to go shirtless and be called Beef," said Fred.

"Like, I was going to be a werker on a giant cheese sculpture," said Shaggy.

"I ras roing to be his replacement emo ringer," said Scooby, "And wear a long blonde rig, and be called Phreako. "

"Zoinks! Like the Boo Brothers, Freako, Shrieko, and Meako?" asked Norville.

"No, Phreako, Floppo, and Dot," said Shaggy. "Like, all emo."

"What about you, Daphne? Did you get a part?" Frederick asked.

"He thought I was too boring, and told me to begone," said Daphne. "But them Dace spoiled everything, which serves him right."

"He told me I was mousy, alien, and beautiful, and that I should be his muse. Then he tried to take my glasses and smash them. Nobody touches the glasses," said Dace.

"Didn't you feel flattered by the attention?" Velma asked. "I'm sure I would have been."

"I am not a muse," said Dace.

"After she slugged him, he got mad and threw the lot of us out of the gallery," said Fred. "We saw a suspicious-looking character leave at the same time, and we caught him, but he was only selling forged copies of Warsaw's work, so we let him go."

"Couldn't he have been the monster?" asked Velma.

"No, because while we were following him the monster attacked again at the studio and turned another person into a statue, this time his old muse, Clio," said Fred.

"Then it ran out and found the forger, Werker One, and turned him into a statue too," said Daphne.

"Not doing too well on this mystery, are you?" asked Anne.

"Just wait," said Fred. "We're going back to the gallery tonight for another big showing. And we'll be ready with a trap."


	14. For Art's Sake

**For Art's Sake**

Mayor Janet Nettles, in a long blonde wig, sang at the Pretenso Gallery, while her friend, Sheriff Bronson Stone, juggled fish with no shirt on and with a fish on his head.

The art-loving Sheriff had taken Janet to see the Arrtwerks studio of Randy Warsaw, and he had roped them into doing this for the sake of Art, after his attempt to use Mystery Incorporated members ended in failure (and Dace punching him when he tried to break her glasses).

"_What will you do when you see a caribou? Better go find the hunters._"

Junk, the sculpture made of scrap metal, pulled itself together and roared as it rolled across the room toward Warsaw.

"It's time for my masterpiece," said Warsaw, spreading both arms to welcome the attack.

"Now gang!" said Fred, watching from the sidelines.

Janet Nettles, who had been briefed beforehand on the plan, threw her wig to catch around the monster's legs. Daphne threw a picture frame to catch its arms. Fred rode a cow (one that Stone had posed on earlier) into the sculpture to knock it apart.

Their moment of triumph was short-lived, as the monster began to pull itself back together. Then Velma stepped from the sidelines and clicked a remote-control device. Junk fell back onto the floor in a heap of parts.

"This remote-control jammer, built from a design that Marcie emailed me, should keep the monster helpless," Velma said.

"Now let's see who the monster really is," said Fred, pulling off the TV "head" and revealing a secret compartment containing the villain.

"Butch Firbanks?" the gang said in chorus.

"You got me," said Firbanks, "But don't expect my introspective personality to register guilt."

"As I suspected," said Velma. "He used to be a polka accordian player in Baveria until Mr. Warsaw recruited him for his emo/eco band. He paralyzed his victims with a rare strain of Baverian yeast."

"I wanted revenge because he changed everything about me," said Firbanks. "I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling polka haters."

Sheriff Stone and the Mayor took the culprit away.

"Mystery Incorporated, you saved Modern Art from the clutches of the bourgeoisie. There's only one thing left to say: you bore me horribly. Get out, shoo, shoo," said Warsaw.

"Some people don't appreciate it when you save the day," said Fred as they drove away.

"Tomorrow I'll go back to Planespheric Disk research and let Dace take my place," said Velma. "She'll help you make short work of the next case."

Dace did, by insisting on going for the obvious suspect in the Graveyard Ghoul case while the others were distracted by Swedish least-likely-suspects who served meatballs and chocolate.

* * *

><p>The researchers were waylaid on the way to the library by Mr. E.<p>

"I need those Pieces of the Disk," he told them. "The stakes are higher than ever. Velma, won't you tell the others to join forces with me?"

"I don't know why I ever trusted you. After the way you threatened and manipulated Marcie, I know I never will again," said Velma.

They walked on.

"Good call, Velma," said Anne, the Coolsville Daphne. "I thought I spotted a bird lurking in the tree behind him. It looked like a large purple parrot."

"Professor Pericles," said Velma. "I knew it. The old Mystery Incorporated is joining forces again. Now that we have as many Disk pieces as they do we've become a serious threat."

"Do you think even your old friend Cassidy Williams is on their side?" asked Anne.

Velma said, "The radio station has never re-opened after the Executioner attack. There's been no word from her at all. She's either on their side or they forced her into silence for good."

Velma and Anne hung back from the others and talked together quietly.

"Speaking of silence," said Velma quietly, "Are you ever going to tell Frederick, your Fred, how you feel about him?"

"Who said I have feelings for Frederick? Did I say that?" asked Anne.

"You kissed our Fred, thinking he was Frederick, so of course you do," said Velma.

"All right, I admit I do, but I don't know if my Fred has feelings for me. I'm afraid to talk to him. What if he doesn't? I'll be crushed," said Anne.

"You've let all these years go by just for that?" asked Velma.

"We came so close, in a television talent contest recently. We sang a love duet and even kissed, but for all I know Fred just did it for the show."

"Seriously pathetic, Anne. But why don't you take your cue from our Fred and Daphne? I'm sure they're going to reconcile soon. They're your counterparts, so if they admit they care for each other then you should trust that."

"I'm not so sure. I'll keep watching. If they reconcile, then I'll speak to Fred," said Anne.

"Good for you," said Velma.

"How about you?" asked Anne. "Any thought of reconciling with Shaggy?"

"I'm completely over him," said Velma. "Anyway, right now I'm keeping out of the way to give Dace a chance. She has a better shot than I did of avoiding dog issues since Scooby's completely taken up with Nova."

"No jealousy at all?" Anne asked.

"Not really. Someone else has captured my interest, even though it's hopeless. I may never see this person again face to face," said Velma.

"You mean...?" asked Anne.

"Marcie. She's on the run from Mr. E," said Velma.

"Maybe when we clear all of this up Mr. E and his cohorts will be behind bars," said Anne.

"So will Marcie, probably. She violated her parole by running. Looks like I'm destined to be alone," said Velma.

"I hope you can find a way," said Anne.

"And I hope that you can," said Velma.


	15. Mount Diabla

**Mount Diabla**

The gangs met the next day at Fred's house to plan.

"Daphne is going to rest up at home today," Fred told everyone. "She had a strong allergic reaction to the chocolate she ate when we investigated the Bjorklunds."

"Like, an addictive reaction," said Shaggy.

"Yeah, raddictive," said Scooby.

"I don't get it," said Shaggy. "I could eat chocolate all day and it would never bother me."

"You could eat anything all day," said Velma.

"Leave Shaggy alone and stick to the point. " said Dace (the Coolsville Velma). "What did you find out?"

"We found the memoirs of Stella Houston and Sissy Hawgshank," said Velma.

"Wait, I know those names" said Anne (the Coolsville Daphne). "Were they cowgirls?"

"Yes, two members of a mystery-solving gang of cowgirls," said Velma. "How did you know?"

"We had a mystery once where two people dressed up as their ghosts to scare a dude ranch out of business," said Anne.

"Was it a major case?" Fred asked. "With lots of traps?"

"It was just a little case. No traps," said Frederick (the Coolsville Fred). "Nobody would make a movie of it or anything. It was written up in a few pages for a comic book."

"Wow, people make movies and comic books about you?" Velma asked. "I'm jealous."

"Don't be," said Anne. "The movies have been miserable. The first was supposed to be a treatment of how we got back together to investigate some horrific monsters on Moonscar Island. But by the time Hollywood got done with it, it had become a haunted island amusement park."

"That's too bad," said Velma. "That's Hollywood."

"Well, Sarah Michelle Gellar did a decent job of portraying me, given the script she had to work with," Anne said. "I wish she could have enacted me again when there was a plot to frame us with evil doubles, instead of that Hollywood extra, Grey DeLisle."

"Off topic again," said Dace. "What did you find out about the cowgirls, Velma?"

"They found a conquistador's helmet near the base of Mount Diabla," said Velma. "They found it when they were watering their talking pet bull, Tiny. Scooby, Tiny was your counterpart in their gang."

"Ri'm no bull," said Scooby.

"There have been several groups around here, of four people solving mysteries, each with a talking animal," said Velma.

"That just proves my point," said Fred. "Young people have always liked solving mysteries and making traps."

"Not really, Fred," said Velma. "But it's a connection we should follow up. That helmet could be a clue to finding the treasure the conquistadors supposedly buried near Crystal Cove.".

"Where is the helmet now?" asked Shaggy. "Like, was it handed on to the descendants of the cowgirls?"

"They hid it in the rocks near where they found it. They thought it was cursed because they had nightmares that night."

Dace said, "It was a more superstitious time. Of course we don't believe in curses today."

"You don't, but I'm keeping an open mind," said Norville.

Velma said, "They intended to come back for it, but tragedy struck. Three of them died in an explosion the next day."

"Zoinks! My open mind is convinced – that we should stay far away from that c-cursed helmet," said Norville.

"Re roo!" said Scoobert (the Coolsville Scooby).

"I think we should go to Mount Diabla and investigate," said Fred. "But you can stay back, Norville. We only need one of each of us, so we don't confuse people. I think it should be all locals, since it's our city's secrets and treasure."

"I could stand in for Daphne, since she's sick," Anne said.

"You're welcome to, Daph – I mean Anne," said Fred.

"You'd be welcome to take my place too, Norville," said Shaggy.

"Like, no thanks, buddy. This one is all yours," said Norville.

* * *

><p>"Here we are, gang. Scorpion Wells," said Fred. "Let's see if they know about the helmet."<p>

"Like, are you sure this is a town?" asked Shaggy. "It looks a place like where old trailers come to die."

The town had an eerie, run-down atmosphere. Strings of lights trailing down from a pole were the only street-lamps. Tanks of propane were everywhere, and there was a huge stack of old tires near an outdoor fire pit. They stopped in front of an old Quonset hut with a sign reading: "City Hall – Dangerously Explosive Gas Emporium."

There was a sound behind them, and they turned to find weirdly muffled figures coming their way from every direction. They were a bit intimidated until one of them pulled off her muffler, revealing a weatherbeaten but friendly face. The other townsfolk also unmasked, showing their smiling, monstrous faces.

"Howdy, strangers! Welcome to Scorpion Wells. I'm Granny Snaggletooth, and here's Lobster Man, Bucket-Head Brenda, and, uh... the hideous Ugly Jimmy."

Ugly Jimmy unmasked, revealing a stunningly handsome face. Anne gasped in admiration.

"He don't quite fit in round here, being so deformed and all," said Granny Snaggletooth, as Jimmy hung his head in shame.

Anne was tempted to go over and flirt with Jimmy, but she realized it might get back to her Frederick, so she refrained.

"Thanks, strange and kindly desert folks," said Fred. "We've investigating a mystery and we'd like to ask a few questions, if you don't mind."

"Don't mind at all, as long as this tall drink 'o water is doin' the askin'," said Granny Snaggletooth, grabbing Shaggy by the arm. "What's your name, handsome?"

"Like... S-Shaggy," said Shaggy, quivering.

Ugly Jimmy came forward, "What would you like to know?"

"We're looking for something that was lost a long time ago near Mount Diabla," said Velma.

Granny Snaggletooth's face turned angry and she pushed Shaggy away. "What you want to go messin' around on that mountain for?"

She glared at them. "We're having a barbeque tonight. Stay and eat, and we'll tell you all about the mountain, and why you should forget you ever heard of it."

The "barbeque" was lizards roasted on a stick over a smelly bonfire of old tires. The gang didn't have much appetite.

"Now that we're all friends, what can you tell us about Mount Diabla?" asked Velma.

"It's a dark, evil place," said Granny Snaggletooth.

"Invisible spirits guard the mountain from all trespassers," said Ugly Jimmy. "Nobody goes up there."

There was a sudden shriek nearby, and an evil laugh.

"The invisible spirits!" said Jimmy.

"Ro no!" said Scooby, jumping into Shaggy's arms.

Trailers started tipping over by themselves, and the shrieks were heading their way. The fire exploded, sending burning tires rolling in every direction.

"Leave this place or suffer for eternity!" called one invisible spirit.

The water tower fell, splashing out the fire and drenching everyone.

"You brought the wrath of the spirits on us," said Granny Snaggletooth in fury. "Now leave, before things get ugly!"

As the gang drove away, Anne said, "Those poor people!"

"They can't help it," said a voice from the back of the van. "Their fear of the spirits is very reasonable."

Fred slammed on the brakes, and Ugly Jimmy tumbled forward.

Anne gave another sigh of attraction.

"Ugly Jimmy? What are you doing here?" asked Velma.

"I want to help you solve the mystery. I will guide you up Mount Diabla," said Jimmy.

"Why?" asked Fred.

"I'm sick of living in fear," said Jimmy. "Those invisible demons need to be stopped. There's already enough fear in town thanks to what people _can_ see, my hideously deformed face!"

"About that face, you really need to know..." Anne began to say.

"We're happy to accept your help," said Fred abruptly.

"But first we need to check on one thing. Who do we know who has access to the technology of invisibility?" asked Velma.

"Alice May?" asked Shaggy. "When she was the Obliteratrix?"

"Yes, and where did she get it from?" asked Velma.

Nobody responded.

"Quest Industries, working for Destroido. Dr. Quest is our friend now, and he might have some tips on how to defeat the monsters," said Velma.

* * *

><p>At Quest Industries, Dr. Quest introduced his family.<p>

"These is my son Johnny, and my adopted son Hadji," he told them. "Boys, these are my friends from Mystery Incorporated: Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo."

"Pleased to meet you, Johnny and Hadji," said Daphne/Anne.

"Hi," said Johnny.

"Hello," said Hadji more formally.

"If you're going on a dangerous mission I'd like to come along," said Johnny. "Things have been slow around here lately."

"I'm sure your dad wouldn't let us take you anywhere dangerous," said Fred.

"You'd be surprised," said Johnny.

"Given who I work for now, I can't offer you so much help as sending my son along," said Dr. Quest. "But I can answer a few questions for you."

"How do the invisibility suits work, like the one you gave the Obliteratrix? Would it work to throw paint on someone using it?" Velma asked.

"It creates a field that warps light around the suit," said Dr. Quest. "So that from every direction the light path leads to what is behind the person, thus making them completely invisible. Anything you threw onto the suit would be behind the field and invisible too."

"Like, can they see?" Shaggy asked.

"Yes, the suit captures and amplifies the light that would have reached their eyes and transmits it. The dark spots this creates are virtually undetectable."

"Hmm, light can pass, but nothing solid," said Anne.

"Okay, I have a plan," said Fred. "Let's get up to Mount Diabla. We've left Ugly Jimmy waiting in the car long enough."

* * *

><p>From under the deck of the Spanish galleon high in the mountains, they heard voices.<p>

"Once we made sure the locals wouldn't bother us, this mission has been easy," said one female voice.

"It was a piece of pie to defeat the traps," said a male voice.

"A piece of cake, Brad," said the first voice.

"Thank you, Judy, a piece of cake," said the second voice.

The instant they came on deck, a spray of dust and smoke filled the air, making them cough.

"Get them," said Fred. "Light can bend around them, but the smoke can't get in. Aim for the holes in the smoke!"

Scooby leaped for an outstretched hand and grabbed the triangle-shaped hole in Brad's hand in his mouth.

"He got the Disk piece!" Brad said. "Plan D, Judy."

Brad dove for the first person he saw, Ugly Jimmy. His charge knocked Jimmy off the deck and he rolled down the mountain.

Judy grabbed Anne from behind. "Give us the piece now or I'll break her neck."

"Real Mom and Dad," said Fred. "You're even more evil than my fake dad. Did you ever really care about me?"

"Not particularly," said Brad.

"That's why we tricked Jones into kidnapping you," said Judy. "Now, hand over the piece."

Anne flipped Judy over her back, then executed a flying martial kick on the smoky outline of Brad.

"How did Daphne learn to fight all of a sudden?" Brad asked with a groan.

"This is the other Daphne, and I've competed in martial arts at the international level, or I would have if the tournament hadn't been a fake," said Anne.

"Strategic retreat, Brad," said Judy. "We can't win this one."

Both invisible figures vaulted out of the smoke field and disappeared.

"Good one, gang," said Fred. "We didn't catch them, but we got the piece."

"We'd better go down the mountain and see how Jimmy is doing," said Anne.

* * *

><p>They found Jimmy among his people at the bottom of the mountain. He was battered from his fall and his face was ruined, a mass of bruises and scars.<p>

"They're calling me Handsome Jimmy now!" said Jimmy.

"That's right," said Bucket-Head Brenda, putting an arm around him.

"I think I'm going to hork," said Anne.

"You didn't really want him," said Velma quietly.

"I know, I just don't like to see beauty get ruined," said Anne.

"We never found the conquistador's helmet we were looking for, but the mission is still a success," said Fred.

"Is that what you were looking for?" asked Handsome Jimmy. "I found one of those years ago. You're welcome to it, in gratitude for what you've done for me."

He went into his trailer and came back with the helmet.

Velma looked it over. "Segundo llave. Just like we thought."

"Thank you, Jimmy and everyone. We need to get back to town now," said Anne.

"Why don't you stay with me a while, handsome? They can pick you up later when I'm done with you," said Granny Snaggletooth, reaching for Shaggy.

"Zoinks! N-no thanks, pressing business at home. I think I left the coffee pot on," said Shaggy.

They ran for the Mystery Machine, with Scooby calling his catch phrase, "Scooby Dooby Dooo!"


	16. The Brothers Grim

**The Brothers Grim**

The gang walked through the hallway at Crystal Cove High School (just the gang that belonged there – the rest were at the Jones mansion).

"I told you, Fred, I'm not ready to go on a date with you yet," said Daphne. "I'm still getting over how Baylor used me and betrayed me."

"Not a real date, just practice," said Fred. "Look at Brenda and Dylan over there. They practice a lot and they're dating experts."

Brenda was kissing a brown-haired guy in the hall, but when she turned around she revealed the guy was not Dylan.

"Gary?" said Fred.

"Brenda, what happened to Dylan?" asked Daphne.

Brenda said, "Dylan ran off and left me in danger. We're through."

Gary said, "This huge pilgrim dude was in Lover's Lane last night, judging and attacking people with a giant hammer. I was jogging by with my soccer ball, so I took him out, two kicks: me kicking the ball and me kicking the ball again."

"He was so brave. I can't believe I wasted my time with a boy like Dylan when I could have been with a man like Gary," said Brenda.

"Like, did this Pilgrim guy say anything?" asked Shaggy.

"He said, 'All shall be judged and all shall be punished by Hebediah Grim!'" Brenda said.

"Rebediah Rim," said Scooby-Doo with a shudder.

* * *

><p>Later, at the Jones home, the two gangs discussed the case.<p>

"Poor Brenda and Dylan," said Daphne. "Monsters seem to attack them all the time. So danger-prone."

"Like you, Daphne, I mean Anne," said Dace (the Coolsville Velma).

"That's different," said Anne. "Sure, I've been kidnapped a few dozen times, but I was actively investigating criminal cases when it happened. It sounds like Brenda and Dylan have been attacked three times as innocent bystanders."

Fred said, "They ended up in intensive care after the Manticore attack."

Velma said, "Marcie didn't mean to hurt anyone. She told me she locked them up in a secret room of the haunted temple at Creepy Spooky Terror Land. She left them food and bottled water, but for some reason they didn't drink."

Daphne asked, "Was it Trickell's Trickquid water?"

Velma said, "I'm not sure. I doubt it."

Daphne said, "That explains it. Brenda won't drink anything else because she's afraid regular water will make her fat. She wouldn't have let Dylan drink any either."

"Like, we're dying of thirst and hunger too," said Shaggy. "Where are the snacks?"

"Yeah! We need racks," said Scooby.

"Oh, I forgot about snacks," said Fred. "Can't you skip them this time?"

"No way!" said Shaggy and Scooby together.

"Don't worry," said Frederick, the other Fred. "We've been at home with plenty of free time, so Norville and Scoobert went into the kitchen and made some snacks for our meeting."

"That was nice of them," said Daphne.

"Then we, like, ate them all," said Norville.

"Rum, rum," said Scoobert.

"I'm starting to not like you, other me," said Shaggy. "This town isn't big enough for both of our appetites."

"Same here," said Scooby to Scoobert.

The two pairs faced off, glaring at each other.

"Don't worry, I'll order out for pizza," said Daphne.

That seemed to settle things down for the moment. Fred's cellphone gave a belch.

"That means I've got a new text message. Let me check," said Fred. He read it and scowled. "My evil real Mom and Dad are offering to help us catch Hebediah Grim. They say they know the perfect trap."

"Trap is right," said Shaggy. "Their trap, for us."

"Some nerve, after what they did at Scorpion Wells," said Velma.

Fred texted back a shouting reply, "WE'LL DO IT OURSELVES!"

They agreed that the Crystal Cove Mystery Inc. would go up to Lovers Lane, while the Coolsville Mystery Inc. went to the library to try to track down historical information about Hebediah Grim.

* * *

><p>When the Crystal Cove gang went up to Lover's Lane that evening, they found Sheriff Bronson Stone and Mayor Janet Nettles parked there in a squad car.<p>

"Hi Mayor Nettles, Sheriff Stone. What are you doing here? Are you on a date?" asked Velma, noticing the candles and wine glasses on the dashboard.

"This is a stakeout, nothing to see here," said Sheriff Stone loudly.

"Hey, how are we supposed to make incredibly bad, stupid decisions that will wreck the rest of our lives over here, with all that noise?" called a young man in an adjacent car, with a date Daphne recognized as Cheryl Shmendrick.

"Quiet, longhair!" said the Sheriff.

Perhaps he would have said more if not for a gigantic hammer smashing into the side of his car, jamming the driver's side door. Hebediah Grim had struck again.

"For your painted faces, and clothes that rise above the ankles, and fall below the neck, you three womenfolk shall be judged," said Grim.

"Three? What about me?" asked Velma.

"You shall be spared. You are a model of purity: plain, wholesome and untempting," said Grim.

Cheryl's date laughed at this, drawing a hammer attack on his car.

"Quick, save the Mayor," said Stone to Fred and Velma.

They complied, getting Janet Nettles out of the passenger side and into the Mystery Machine. Daphne was left in harm's way, but she dodged Grim's hammer blows and jumped into the car.

Grim was turning to attack Cheryl when a soccer ball hit him in the face and knocked him down. It was Gary again; he scooped up Cheryl in his arms.

The cars at the scene took off. The Mystery Machine nearly went over a steep cliff, but Fred deployed the emergency grappling hooks that Frederick had helped him install and the car was halted in time.

"Piece of cake," said Fred. "Everyone all right?"

He looked back into the van and saw Gary there, holding Cheryl.

"I just happened to be jogging by in time to stop that crazy judge again," said Gary. "One kick this time."

"My hero," said Cheryl.

* * *

><p>Back at the house, Velma said, "Gary showing up twice is too much of a coincidence."<p>

"I agree. He has to be involved," said Daphne.

Fred said, "He can't be Grim himself, but it could be his best friend, Ethan."

"There's another possible suspect we found by research at the library," Dace said. "There was a school play last year called 'The Scorning' with a character just like Hebediah Grim."

"We checked out a Drama Club yearbook," said Anne. "Here's a picture of Grim."

"Like, the costume is identical," said Shaggy. "Someone must have stolen it from the Drama Club."

"The one with the most access would be the student who played the judge, Doogle McGuiness. Or his understudy, who had a second matching costume," said Dace. "But Doogle was reported to be so into the role that he was acting crazy outside the play."

"I think we need a three-way split-up," said Fred. "Both Shaggys and Scoobys will watch Doogle, the rest of the local gang will watch Ethan, and the out-of-town gang will watch Gary."

"Gary too?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"The monster tends to show up where he does, so if we're wrong about the suspects we'll still get a shot at him," said Daphne.

"Like, it won't happen that way," said Shaggy. "With me, the other me, Scoob, and the other Scoob all together, it's twice as likely that the monster will show up where we are and chase us."

"Rive rimes as rikely," said Scoobert.

"I doubt that," said Velma. "Doogle seems like a long shot."

"Like, I agree with Shaggy, and I want six Scooby Snacks in advance, six for each of us," said Norville.

"I don't know if they have Scooby Snacks in this world," said Dace. "Scooby's family isn't famous here, like it was in Coolsville where they created the brand."

"Rite your tongue, Of rourse they do," said Scooby.

* * *

><p>The next day, the groups set off on their missions. Nothing suspicious happened during the school day, and they all had long, boring vigils.<p>

The Scooby group followed Doogle home at nightfall after his Drama Club meeting. They sneaked close to a window where Doogle sat at a table brightly lit with makeup lighting.

Doogle answered a call on his cell phone, and said, "Yes, I have another costumed job tonight. It's from that odd bird from the Crystal Cove Animal Asylum for the Criminally Insane. Don't worry, I'll knock 'em dead. All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. "

The four investigators rushed away from the window and hid in the bushes.

"D-did you hear that, Scoob?" asked Shaggy. "Like, he has orders from Professor Pericles!"

"Re's roing to rock us read!" said Scoobert.

"Like, we've got to call the others for help before he gets his monster suit on," said Norbert, fumbling for his cell phone. "Wait, mine's no good here. Use yours!"

"Too late!" said a grim voice behind them. "Eavesdroppers shall be judged!"

It was Hebediah Grim. He smashed at them with his gigantic hammer, uprooting a bush and sending it flying. They all ran around the house, with Grim giving chase.

"Like, please don't judge us," said Shaggy. "We're plain and untempting!"

As they rounded the corner of the house into the backyard, Grim stepped into a net and was lifted up into the air. His hammer fell to the ground. So did a school yearbook.

"Good thing we were following Gary," said Frederick, pulling off Grim's mask. "I'm not sure why he came here, though."

"I know," said Dace. "He came to plant this yearbook to throw suspicion on Doogle."

She opened the pages, and showed that the Grim victims were marked as "hot."

"He attacked girls and then protected them, to get dates," Dace said.

"But what was Doogle talking about? Like, he's following orders from someone from the Animal Asylum for the Criminally Insane," said Shaggy.

"He'd doing a one-man production of _Animal Farm_ there tonight, that's all," said Dace.

"But how did you manage to attack as Grim when you were there as yourself?" Anne asked Gary.

"You don't know? Good. You have no case," said Gary. "How'd I attack myself, huh? Am I a wizard too? Ooh, wizard magic! Shalakazoo!"

Behind them came a grim voice. "False accusers shall be judged!"

The Coolsville gang ran from the second Hebediah Grim, around the next corner of the house. There a second net, set up by the Crystal Cove gang, caught the second monster.

"Just as we thought," said Velma. "Gary and Ethan were working together, giving each other alibis and each setting the other one up to be the hero."

"Because we didn't trust each other," said Ethan. "Tag-teaming was the only way."

"Who wants to judge me now? Who?" asked Velma. "Yeah! In your face!"

"You're scaring me, Relma," said Scooby-Doo.

Ethan looked at all the duplicate gang members around him. "But... but... how can all of you be in two places at once?"

"Wizard magic, dude," said Norville.

"Scooby-Dooby-Doooo!" the two dogs cried out in unison.


	17. Ski Break

**Ski Break**

"After everything we've been through, gang, this little ski vacation is just the thing," said Fred.

"Like, Scoob and I aren't as crazy about hitting the slopes as we are about hitting the all-you-can-eat fondu bar," said Shaggy.

"Scooby-Dooby-Doo!"

Velma said, "Not too fast, Fred, we don't want to leave the other gang and the other Mystery Machine behind."

"I recognize this turn," Fred said. "The right fork leads to the Burlington Library. Remember, Velma? You and I were up here with the other guys and we solved a mystery."

Fred blushed, remembering an embarrassing incident there he hadn't told his other friends about. He and the Coolsville Daphne had kissed under the influence of a hallucination caused by terror wood smoke.

"Like, no need to go to the library if the mystery there is already solved," said Shaggy. "Our karmic duty is done."

Daphne said, "According to the other gang, there's a big chance we'll run into another mystery anywhere we go. That's what happens to them all the time."

"I hope not," said Velma. "We deserve a real vacation."

There was a slight shift in the snow on the slope above them, but no snow fell on the road.

In the other car, Frederick followed. They all made it to the Weathering Heights Ski Resort without incident.

"They have small two-bed rooms in the ski lodge," said Daphne. "To keep things simple, each person will room with their other-dimensional counterpart: Anne with me, Fred with Frederick, Velma with Dace, and Shaggy with Norville."

"Rhat about me?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"Rand re?" asked Scoobert.

"Like, both Scoobs with both of us, of course," said Shaggy.

As they were lining up to get room keys, a heavyset man with a black beard pushed in front of them. He was accompanied by two muscular bodyguards.

"Mr. E?" the gangs exclaimed in unison.

"What are you doing here?" Fred asked.

"It's a free country," said Mr. E. "But since you're here, I want to stress how important it is that your gang cooperate with me before someone gets hurt."

"Like, it's not happening, E," said Shaggy.

"If that was a threat, we don't have the disk pieces on us," said Fred.

"Too bad; I brought mine. If we put them together, secrets could be revealed that would save Crystal Cove," said E.

"Ror restroy it," said Scooby.

"Don't even think about trying to break into my room to try to get my disk pieces," said E. "My bodyguards, Fuhrman and Huskie, will be on high alert."

"As if we would stoop to stealing from you," said Velma.

Mr. E and his entourage stomped off, the bodyguards loaded with his baggage.

After everyone settled into rooms, everyone except the Shaggys and Scoobys went outside wearing skis. The latter four came out without skis, sniffing the air hungrily.

"Like, let us at that all-you-can-eat fondu bar," said Norville.

"Rondo rar!" echoed Scoobert.

"That's at the restaurant at the top of the ski hill," said Fredrick. "We have to ride the lift up there."

"Ret's go!" said Scooby.

The ski lift seated two people at a time. The two Great Danes raced ahead and jumped on the first available seat, cutting ahead of the others. Dace and Shaggy ended up sharing the next lift seat.

Halfway up the slope, the lift got stuck, stranding everyone high above the slope for a few minutes.

"Zoinks! I don't like heights," said Shaggy.

"It's a chance to talk alone for a few minutes," said Dace.

"Like sure, I guess," said Shaggy.

"You're so much like the Shaggy of my group on the outside," said Dace. "I wonder how much like him you are as a person."

"Like, pretty alike," said Shaggy.

"Our Shaggy and Daphne were an item for a while, before the whole gang got back together. Especially during the 'Thirteen Ghosts' investigation, but then they broke up. Did anything like that happen with you?"

Shaggy groaned. "We got mixed up in a 'Thirteen Ghosts' case last summer, when Fred was off at trap camp and Velma was at computer camp. Daphne and I were dupes who got doped, I mean, dopes who got duped, by a Vincent Van Ghoul impersonator and his kid con-artist sidekick, Flim-Flam. We were, like, flim-flammed, for real."

"And you and Daphne got together?" asked Dace.

"Who told you that?" asked Shaggy. "If it ever gets back to Fred, Daphne will kill me. I mean, like, nothing happened."

"Your secret's safe with me," said Dace. "I'm glad you don't kiss and tell, or at least try not to."

"It's all totally over, and so's anything between Velma and me," said Shaggy. "No reason to worry."

"I'm not, only our Shaggy used to be more of a ladies' man," said Dace. "There was Googie, a sort of cheerleader racing groupie. They were over when he stopped auto-racing."

"Like, that never happened to me," said Shaggy.

"And there was Mei Ling from Hong Kong, more of a long-distance relationship," said Dace.

"Mai Le? Like, she only got close to me to get a chance to steal a ruby," said Shaggy.

"Different person," said Dace. "I've fallen for my share of crooks, too. Like Ben Ravencroft. And I guess Winsor counts, too. I've decided I'm not going to wait for him to get out of prison - I can date other people."

"Like me?" Shaggy asked.

"That's what I was talking about," said Dace. "Even though I'll have to go back to my own world eventually."

"We'll, like, play it as it goes," said Shaggy. He put an arm around her as the lift resumed its climb to the top.

After a fondu dinner, Shaggy tried to take the ski lift down and found the lift had closed.

"Don't worry, Shaggy," said Dace. "You and Scooby can ride down on my back while I ski down."

"Like, what?" said Shaggy.

"For real?" asked Scooby.

"I have powerful upper body strength, remember? Strong legs, too," said Dace. "I can carry the whole gang and run when I have to. You'll be a light load for me."

The balance part was a little tricky, and both Shaggy and Scooby yelled all the way down, but they made it. Everyone settled down for the night in rooms shared with their counterparts.

At about one in the morning, Fred shouted, "I just got a call from Cassidy Williams. She's in trouble back in town. Come on, gang!"

The others sleepily responded, and the local Mystery Machine headed off on the road back to town.

The others were headed back to bed when Shaggy came out of his room. "Like, what's up, gang? Did someone say Cassidy Williams was in trouble?"

"Shaggy?" asked Dace. "Then it must have been Norville who went back to town with the rest of your gang. Which Scooby went?"

"Scooby-Dooby-Doo!" said Scoobert.

"No problem, as long as they have one Shaggy and one Scooby," said Shaggy. "I'm heading back to bed."

"Velma left, so I'm alone in my room," said Dace. "I have a thermos of cocoa and marshmallows and nobody to share them with," said Dace. "Would you like to come over for a while?"

"Like, sure," said Shaggy with a wide grin.

* * *

><p>The others had not returned by the next morning. Dace and Shaggy joined the others at breakfast, looking very relaxed.<p>

There was a shout from the lobby, "I want Mystery Incorporated arrested! They attacked my men and broke into my room!"

They ran out to find Mr. E, accompanied by two scratched-up looking guards.

"What happened, E?" Frederick asked.

"You know what happened! Someone in a bear-monster costume broke into my room last night. And the disk pieces are missing!"


	18. Midnight Zone

**Midnight Zone**

While the old Mystery Incorporated remained at the ski lodge, the new gang responded to a distress call from Crystal Cove.

"I hope this call from Cassidy Williams isn't just a ruse to split us up," said Fred.

"Like, who is Cassidy Williams again?" asked Norville.

"Wait. You're not our Shaggy?" asked Daphne.

"Oops, I guess your Shaggy was zonked out and I was half asleep when you tried to wake us up. I just jumped in the Mystery Machine with you. Do you want to, like, take me back?" asked Norville.

"No time," said Velma. "You'll do. You're exactly like our Shaggy."

"Like, even better," said Norville. "I've got years more experience."

"Ror the same year of rexperience over and over," said Scooby-Doo.

"You've got a point there, Scoob," said Norville. "But back to the original point. You don't trust Cassidy?"

"She lied to us from the beginning," said Fred. "She was a spy for Mr. E, while pretending to be a friendly DJ."

"I remember looking at a wrecked-up radio station when we first got here," said Norville. "But wasn't she, like, attacked by robots? She must be one of the good guys, right?."

"Never can tell, with someone as devious as Mr. E," said Velma.

* * *

><p>"You know what caused the explosion?" asked the Sheriff.<p>

"Faulty wiring," said Cassidy.

"Works for me. Wrap it up, boys. We're heading out," said the Sheriff.

"That's it? Faulty wiring? You're not even going to investigate?" asked Mayor Nettles.

"Faulty wiring is a win-win-win situation," said Sheriff Stone. "Minimal paperwork for me, insurance money for the station, and a new public pool for the town."

"A public pool? What do you mean?" asked Mayor Nettles.

Sheriff Bronson Stone pointed to the smoking crater filled with water from the fire hoses.

"Case closed," said Nettles. "Van Ghoul movie at my house?"

"I'll get my smoker," said Stone.

The police cars headed out just as the gang arrived in the Mystery Machine.

"Cassidy, are you hurt?" asked Daphne.

"We brought ointment," said Fred.

Cassidy produced a shotgun and aimed it in their direction.

"She hates ointment!" yelled Norville.

"Hit the dirt!" said Cassidy.

They dropped, and Cassidy fired at the metal robot just behind them. The shotgun blast made a huge hole in it and it crashed to the ground.

"Cassidy, what's going on?" asked Daphne.

"Start with why there's a World War II-era robot on the ground," said Velma.

"We can't talk here," said Cassidy.

* * *

><p>They gathered around the table outside the Clam Cabin. Scooby and Norville ate a large plate of clams as they talked.<p>

"That robot's like the one who attacked you before, disguised as the Executioner, isn't it?" asked Velma.

"Yes," said Cassidy. "I've been in hiding, but I sneaked back so I could try to make broadcasts exposing Mr. E, Pericles, and the rest. Before I got very far, another Kriegstaffebot showed up and now the station is gone. I think Pericles controls them."

"Why didn't you contact us before this?" asked Fred.

"I would have told you sooner, but you all don't trust me," said Cassidy.

"With good reason," said Velma. "You lied to us."

"I hear you," said Cassidy, "But I've changed. Ask me anything, and I will tell you the truth."

Daphne said, "Okay. What's the story with you and Mr. E? Why did you help him?"

"It's, um, complicated," said Cassidy.

"Wrong answer," said Daphne, crossing her arms and turning away from Cassidy.

"Like, I trust you," said Norville.

"Why, Shaggy?" asked Cassidy. "You once said 'A fooled man can't get fooled again'. "

"I'm not that Shaggy," said Norville. "You haven't fooled _me _yet."

Velma said, "I've identified a Lassiter Gringol mollusk on this robot."

"Looks like a snail. Yecch!" said Scooby.

"It is a snail, Scooby- a rare sea snail whose picky mollusk diet restricts it to a deep Costa marine trench, located right off Crystal Cove," said Velma. "These robots must have an underwater origin in that trench. Aaaah!"

Another killer Nazi robot had come out of the sea and leaped up to their table, but Skipper Shelton harpooned it to the wall of the Clam Cabin.

"Aah! Go back to the deep where ya came from, ya scurvy tin fish!" said Shelton. Ya rusty scalawags are worse than sea rats! Sorry about that, kids. Free brine and cuttlefish on the house."

"Gang, we need to get to that trench," said Fred.

"And I know someone who can get us there," said Daphne.

* * *

><p>Later that night, they met at the docks with Tom Williams and Tub Murphy. They were the young ocean-going sons of Dr. Paul Williams and Capt. Michael Murphy, the Simon and Garfunkel of marine biology. Daphne was their favorite babysitter.<p>

The boys had a pet seal with them (named Scooby in honor of the locally famous dog), and it ate up Scooby's doggie bag from the Clam Cabin.

"Technically, that was Scooby's doggie bag, so, like, it's as much his as yours," said Norville.

Scooby looked like he didn't agree.

"So, are you guys sure that you can get us all the way down to that trench?" asked Fred.

"No problem! That's where the undersea town is," said Tom.

"Wait. Hold the phone! There's an undersea town?" asked Fred.

"Sure! We used to go all the time until those German robots ruined it," said Tub. "Dumb old robots."

"But how are we going to get there?" asked Velma.

"We'll take Moby!" said Tom.

Tub whistled, and a huge shape rose out of the sea.

"Relax," said Tom. "It's just Moby Dick, our sub."

* * *

><p>Later, they were getting on diving suits and preparing to board the sub.<p>

"Get to know your air tank," said Tom. If Moby loses power, and we have to bail, you can't breathe water. Trust me, we've tried."

"Like, isn't it too dark to dive? How can we see anything if we can't see anything?" asked Norville.

A glow came up from behind him. "Oh. Okay. Like, that's better," said Norville.

Scooby tapped him on the shoulder and stammered out a warning. Norville turned.

A giant glowing head appeared, the head of an old woman who spoke with a German accent, "Go no further! There is nothing for you beneath our waves, except doom! Travel below those waters, and you shall never see your home again."

The head vanished. Norville and Scooby were all for bailing out of the mission immediately, but the others, as usual, were only encouraged by the appearance of the ghost.

After the submarine dived, Tom and Tub wanted the controls to themselves, so the others hung back. Cassidy was going to ask Daphne about Fred; she saw Daphne looking at Fred confidently, inspired by the example of the parallel couple, so she moved on to talk to Norville instead.

"How are you holding up, Shaggy?" Cassidy asked.

"Like, as well as usual," said Norville. "I don't have combat training like you."

"I've been trained by Mr. E's experts in martial arts," said Cassidy. "But I thought you'd just been to military school."

"Other Shaggy," said Norville. "The closest I came was hypnosis one time to become fearless and unstoppable when I heard a code word, and back to normal when I heard or thought it again."

"What happened to that?" asked Cassidy. "Seems like something you could use about now."

"I had it taken off," said Norville. "It was a lot of trouble flipping back and forth. Especially when we didn't know the code."

"I've had some hypnosis training as part of my martial arts," said Cassidy. "Let's try to remove the block."

While Tom and Tub fooled with the lights and explained about the Midnight Zone, Cassidy worked with Norville. He was an excellent hypnosis subject, as the Ghost Clown and many others had discovered before.

"What was the key word?" Cassidy asked.

"Bad," said Norville.

"No, it's all right," said Cassidy. "You can tell me the word."

"Like, the word is 'bad'," said Norville.

"From now on, when you hear the word 'bad' spoken, you will become courageous and unstoppable like you were before. You will revert when you hear the word 'bad' spoken again. Only spoken, not thought, because that could cause cycles."

"Like, I understand," said Norville in a trance.

"When I snap my fingers, you will awake," said Cassidy. "You will be in your old state of mind until you hear the key word."

"Like, I'm awake," said Norville. "When do we start the hypnosis?"

"It's done," said Cassidy. "Bad."

Norville snapped to attention with a confident look on his face. "You know, Doll-Face, we ought to go out some time."

"It takes a brave man to use a nickname like Doll-Face on me," said Cassidy. "I like brave men."

"That's me," said Norville. "Brave and bad to the bone."

He reverted. "Zoinks! Did I just ask you for a date? Sorry."

"Don't be sorry," said Cassidy. "I may take you up on that offer, once we get through all this."

Norville gulped. What had he gotten himself into?

"It's too bad that I'm a generation older than you," said Cassidy.

Norville was back to Mr. Confidence. "I'm older than I look, Doll-Face. I'm at least a generation older than you."

Tom and Tub turned the outside lights back on again. There was a giant squid ahead, but they turned on an electric shock and drove it away.

"There it is, the undersea town!" said Tub.

"Wait," said Velma. "Is that- I think that's the lost town of missionaries that disappeared about 300 years ago. When did you guys find this?"

"I don't know," said Tom. "A while ago? Never ran into any missionaries, though. Just robots."

"Dumb old German robots," said Tub.

"Some say the missionaries' disappearance was the beginning of the curse of Crystal Cove," said Velma.

"Like, robots and curses? Ho-ho! I love it," said the courageous Norville.

Scooby looked at him oddly, and stammered, "Which button takes us home?"

Fred said, "My mystery sense is totally tingling. We've got to take a closer look at that town right now."

Fred tossed Norville an armful of air tanks. Norville caught them all with ease.

* * *

><p>Moby Dick landed on the bottom and the gang swam out in their diving suits into the ruined missionary city.<p>

"Jeepers, Fred," said Daphne. "Look at all those holes."

"Yeah. Looks like somebody's been digging," said Fred.

They explored a ruined house with several skeletons around a table.

"I think we just found out where the missionaries went," said Daphne.

"Yeah, out for seafood," said Velma.

"Let's check the cupboards," said Scooby.

Norville headed straight toward one cabinet, opened it for an instant, and slammed it hard into the face of a battle robot.

"Hah! I thought I heard something. Kriegstaffebots!" said fearless Norville.

"Swim!" shouted Cassidy. She added "Bad!" when it looked like Norville wanted to stay and fight the bots hand-to-hand.

They all swam away as fast as they could. The three Kriegstaffebots pursued.

"We can't out-swim them," said Fred. "They're too fast!"

"Tom, Tub, we need help!" said Daphne.

The three bots removed the diving helmets from Norville, Daphne, and Velma. Before the bots could do any more damage, Tom and Tub brought Moby Dick smashing down on them, and opened the mouth hatch for the gang to enter.

They barely had a chance to recover their breath when three more bots swam to the top of the sub and began forcing it toward the bottom. They went over an undersea cliff and landed on a shelf on the other side. Water flooded in from multiple leaks.

"Moby's messed up and venting oxygen!" said Tom.

"We need a place to lie low and make repairs!" said Tub.

"Like, how about that place?" said Norville.

He pointed and they all saw a large lighted facility attached to the cliff on the other side of them.

* * *

><p>Tom and Tub brought their damaged sub into the airlock of the base.<p>

"How fast can you fix Moby?" Fred asked Tom and Tub after everyone was out of the sub.

Before they could answer, the giant glowing ghost head appeared again. "You did not heed my warning. Now, the sea will make you pay... with your lives."

A hatch irised shut above them, and sea water poured in from two spouts on one side.

"Fred, this is a trap," said Daphne.

"I know," said Fred. "A really good one, too. I think I'm tingling again."

Daphne slapped him to bring him out of his trap trance. "No tingling. Focus, Fred. What do we do?"

"Oh, right," said Fred. "Uh, let's see. Looks like an early version of the Heinrich Aquabox, so A release valve should be right..."

Fred dived down for it. The water continued to rise, forcing them up to the ceiling.

"Where's Fred? Fred? Fred!" Daphne called.

The water closed over their heads. For a moment it looked like the end, but then the water began to drain out rapidly.

Fred was revealed standing by a large handle he had pulled down. "Fred one, trap zero."

Daphne rushed to him and threw her arms around him. "Fred, you're all right! I..." she suddenly realized what she was doing and pulled back. "Don't ever scare me like that again."

Cassidy opened a door into the rest of the building. "Let's move before Uberhead shows up again."

"Tom? Tub? Are you going to be OK here alone?" Daphne asked.

"Sure! Our dads once left us alone on a reef for two weeks," said Tom.

"We sucked on sea urchins for nourishment," said Tub. "We've got ocean skills!"

The gang reached a room full of robots pushing mining carts. The gang hid behind a cart and peeked over.

"Like, it looks like those robots are mining for something," said Norville.

"Quiet, Norville," said Fred. "They'll... Uh-oh."

One robot walked toward the cart, repeating the word "Eindringling" (which is German for "Intruder"). It lifted up the cart, but the gang had already slipped down a vent tunnel.

They found a panel in the floor and lifted it up, revealing a room with an assembly line.

"Well, I guess we know where Kriegstaffebots come from now," whispered Fred.

The Uberhead flashed into sight again, glaring at them. "So, you still live. Well, I promise you, the sea is more forgiving than my robots."

The assembly-line arms tore through the floor under them, and the gang found themselves in a fight with partially-completed bots.

"Like, those parts want to turn us into parts! Aah!" said Norville.

"Forget about the parts," said Fred. "I'm worried about the whole robots."

They found a nursery room with baby robots. Normally robots are assembled full-size, but this seemed to be some sort of AI experiment. Scooby-Doo thought one was cute and picked it up, but it spit out its pacifier and began to howl.

Drawn by the noise, more bots rushed in, and the Uberhead appeared, shouting "There is no escape!"

They ran down another corridor toward a door marked, "Main Control."

"Look!" said Cassidy. "The control room! I bet the head zeppelin that's been shadowing is behind that door attached to a body."

They saw a figure in a chair, turned away from them.

"There she is," said Fred.

"It's over, Miss October Pest," said Cassidy. "Call off the bots."

The chair turned, revealing a desiccated corpse.

"Like, that is worse than robots," said Norville.

"Nabiru," said a whispering voice.

"Did that thing just whisper?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"I heard it, too," said Fred. "It sounded like..."

"Nabiru," said Velma.

"You think that was her name?" asked Daphne.

"No. Her name was Frau Abigail Gluck," said Velma.

Velma said, "She was part of the benevolent lodge of mystery, the mystery-solving gang formed by Burlington in the 1880s."

Cassidy said, "There was another mystery-solving group in the 1920's: the Darrow family. I meant to get their pictures to you, Velma, but I never got the chance."

"Including us and the original Mystery Incorporated, that makes four groups," said Daphne.

"My guess... there's more," said Velma. "Almost as if... this has all happened before."

"Exactly right, Mystery, Incorporated," said a familiar German-accented voice.

They turned and saw a bird perched on the shoulders of one of a small army of Kriegstaffebots which had silently sneaked up behind them.

"Professor Pericles?" they all said in chorus.

"Ah! Lovely," said Pericles, flying forward and perching on the top of the corpse's head. "I see you have met what's left of Frau Gluck."

He explained his history with the former Nazi scientist, and how she had turned her robots into underwater exploration machines to the search for a lost piece of the Planespheric disk in the ruined city.

"My holographic masquerade as Frau Gluck bought my bots all the time they needed," said Pericles. "And I would have gotten away with eliminating Cassidy if it weren't for you meddling kids."

The bot that Pericles was perched on handed him a piece of the Disk.

"Now that I have everything I need, I can dispose of this place and all of you at the same time," said Pericles.  
>Farewell, darling kinder. Farewell."<p>

A hatch opened with an escape pod, and Pericles shot away to the surface.

"Time to go," said Cassidy. She kicked a way through the advancing bots and they all got out of the room, locking the door on the bots.

"Self destruct in 10 seconds and counting," said a robot voice.

"We can't make it to Moby!" said Fred.

"We've got to try!" said Cassidy.

They slid down a tube that fortunately led to the airlock room where Tom and Tub were fixing Moby Dick.

"We're leaving now!" called Fred.

"I wish! Moby's stuck!" said Tub.

"The only way we can leave is if someone stays behind and keeps the doors open with this manual override lever!" said Tom.

"I'll do it," said Cassidy.

"No!" said Daphne.

"I'll be right behind you," said Cassidy. "Trust me, I'm a fast swimmer."

"Like, I'm staying to help you," said Norville. "Bad."

"Go!" said Cassidy. "I'll be fine. Bad."

Norville shook his head. "Bad."

"You're unstoppable, so I can't stop you. But everyone else, go!" said Cassidy.

Everyone but Cassidy and Norville got through the hatch into Moby Dick.

Daphne turned at the hatch and said, "What I asked about before, why you helped Mr. E.? You loved him once, didn't you?"

"What E. and I had, we lost a long time ago," said Cassidy. "Don't make the same mistake I did. Now, go!"

Hordes of Kriegstaffebots were advancing into the airlock room from every direction.

"Norville, baby," said Cassidy. "Use your muscles on this lever. I'll hold off the bots."

"I should be fighting," said the fearless Norville.

"I have more training," said Cassidy.

Norville nodded. He held the lever open while Cassidy kicked the bots, knocking them back into each other in heaps. Their massive numbers were actually a disadvantage, since they got tangled up with each other.

As soon as Moby Dick was free, Cassidy and Norville dived into the water and swam after the sub. Tom opened the mouth and they both swam inside. Behind them, the building exploded and fell off the cliffs into the depths. Even the sunken city broke apart and fell into the trench.

* * *

><p>Back at the surface, they all breathed a huge sigh of relief.<p>

"You saved us," said Daphne. "I guess we were wrong about you, Cassidy."

"I couldn't have done it without Norville," said Cassidy. "He's a real hero."

"Norville a fearless hero?" said Fred. "Wow."

"Get used to it, Jones," said Norville.

"Reah, get used to it," said Scooby. "I hope I will," he said softly to himself.

"It'll be the other gang and the other Scooby that will have to do that," said Norville. "Yours is still the same old cowardly buddy you know and love."

* * *

><p>The sub reached the shore and they said goodbye to Tom and Tub. Cassidy prepared to leave on her motorcycle.<p>

"Hey, Doll-Face, what if we spend a little time together?" said Norville. "We just escaped with our lives and I feel like celebrating."

Cassidy gave him a thoughtful look. "This is just the hypnosis talking, isn't it, you bad boy."

Norville snapped back, but said, "Like, it's really me, too."

Cassidy said, "All right, you can hang out at my secret hideout for a while."

Norville said. "Not bad. Let's go, Doll-Face."

He got on the back of Cassidy's motorcycle.

"Tell the gang I'll see them soon," said Norville. "And that we have a new member."

They sped away.


	19. Disk Heist

**Disk Heist**

While the new Mystery Inc. (with the old Shaggy, aka Norville) was dealing with the underwater crisis, the old Mystery Inc. (with the Crystal Cove Shaggy) was dealing with the crisis at the ski lodge.

"My pieces of the Disk have been stolen," said Mr. E. "And I strongly suspect that all of you had something to do with it. Who else would know their value?"

"We had nothing to do with it," said Frederick (the old Fred).

"We'll help you get to the bottom of it, though," said Anne (the old Daphne).

Dace (the old Velma) examined the scratches on the door of Mr. E's room. Shaggy was close by her side.

"Something left these scratches," said Dace. "Something with claws. I see traces of bear-like hair, as well."

"Who would know better how to fake a monster attack than Mystery Incorporated, who has dealt with so many fake monsters?" said Mr. E. "Fuhrman, call the police."

"At once, Mr. Owens," said Fuhrman. He left to make the call.

"Like, who is this Fuhrman guy with you?" asked Shaggy.

"My Head of Security at Destroido," said Mr. E.

"A new hire?" asked Frederick.

"That is no business of yours," said Mr. E.

"Ret Ruhrman's a rook," said Scoobert (the original Scooby-Doo, who spoke with more r's than the new Scooby).

"I don't trust you," said Mr. E. "Let's let the police sort it out."

"We'll find the real culprit, and clear our names," said Anne.

"Let's split up, gang," said Frederick. "And look for tracks leading to and from the hotel. The snow is fresh and it will show up bear-monster prints."

"B-bear monster prints?" said Shaggy. Scoobert jumped into his arms.

"Anne, Dace, and I will search clockwise, and you and Scoobert can search counter-clockwise," said Frederick. "We'll meet around the other side of the hotel."

"Unless, like, the Scarebear monster meets us first," said Shaggy.

"Or eats rus rirst," said Scoobert.

As usual, when the gang met up Shaggy and Scoobert were running.

"Like, the Scarebear almost got us!" Shaggy shouted.

"Rolmost rot rus!" agreed Scoobert.

"Let's check the tracks and verify my suspicions," said Dace.

"Not us, we're going back into the hotel to wait," said Shaggy.

"You know if you do that the Scarebear will attack you there again, especially if you go somewhere together looking for food," said Frederick. "If you stick with us the chances are we won't see the monster again for a while."

"Like, you guys really know the formula, don't you?" said Shaggy.

"We've been doing this a lot longer than you," said Anne.

Dace photographed and measured the prints. Frederick also began to plan a trap to catch the monster the next time it appeared.

While they waited for the police to arrive, the gang also made several cell-phone calls. Reception in the mountains was poor, but they got through.

Sheriff Stone finally showed up. "All right, I've had about enough trouble from you kids, and this time I've caught you dead to rights. Let me search your stuff."

"We don't have anything that belongs to Mr. Owens," Dace said.

"I want to look in that Mystery Machine of yours. I see a box in there with lasers shining all around it," said Stone.

"Those are my traps," said Frederick. "You'll never get in without help."

"Then give me your help or you're all under arrest for obstruction of justice," said Stone.

Reluctantly, Frederick opened the box and handed the contents to the Sheriff: three flat, shining, pieces of metal.

"Let me look at them," said Mr. E. "Yes, they look very much like my missing disk pieces. Let me be sure."

He took the pieces and turned them over in his hands, examining them carefully.

"This is all a trick!" said Shaggy. "Like, those are ours. You were never robbed at all. You just accused us to get our disk pieces."

"Reah, a rick!" said Scoobert.

"Are those doodads valuable?" asked Stone.

"Priceless," said Mr. E.

"How about that! I can finally place all of you meddling kids under arrest, for good," said Stone. "Grand theft!"

There was a snarl, and a giant monster bear charged into the room. Everyone backed away.

"I'm the Scarebear! Those aren't his disk pieces. I have the real ones! I can't let these kids get blamed for my crime!"

"You can talk?" Shaggy asked.

"Of course I can talk," said the Scarebear.

"Let's see who the Scarebear really is," said Anne.

Fred unmasked him.

"Mr. Fuhrman!" they all said in chorus.

"That's right, and Fuhrman isn't my real name," said the unmasked Scarebear. "It's Hairmore."

"Why did you change it?" Frederick asked.

"Isn't it obvious, man? Hairmore would give me away as the Scarebear. Like, duh!"

The gang looked at each other, wondering if Hairmore was kidding. Apparently he wasn't.

"All I wanted was to expose Destroido for the sick, soul-destroying evil that it is. Destroido ruins lives, and pays victims to remain quiet. This is one victim who won't remain quiet any longer!"

"How are you a victim?" asked Anne. "You look fine."

"Am I, pretty scarlet-headed temptress?" asked Hairmore. "What if I were to tell you I'm not, in fact, wearing a bear suit, but am covered completely in animal hair?"

"Except for your face?" asked Frederick.

"It would be covered too, handsome, square-jawed young hero, if I didn't have to shave every few hours just to maintain my non-hirsute appearance."

"You see, I purchased a bottle of Gentle Rainflower Bodywash for Men," said Hairmore. "A heavenly scent designed to bring the ladies running. What I didn't know was that the company, Musky Farms, is a division of Destroido and that there's a side-effect. When I contacted Destroido about their product turning me into a hairy bear-man, the company acted as if what had happened to me was – nothing, and tried to pay me off."

He told them that he had taken a job at Destroido to try to prove the product was dangerous, and that he had discovered it was originally a fertilizer which was so toxic it destroyed an entire town.

"I planned to get proof to expose them in public today, and I would have gotten away with it, if not for you mutant-animal-hating kids!"

"I feel kind of bad that we got in the way," said Frederick. "Destroido deserves to be exposed."

"I failed anyway. I thought that the disks Mr. Owens had were computer disks with evidence of the company's corruption, but it turns out they were nothing but historical artifacts of no use to me whatsoever."

"Give them back to me and I won't press charges," said Mr. E.

"Here they are," said Hairmore, pulling three metal disc pieces from his fur.

"By the way, Hairmore," said Mr. E.

"Yes?"

"You're fired."

"Now give us back our pieces, E.," said Dace.

"Very well," said Mr. E. He handed them back. "No harm, no foul."

* * *

><p>Back at his lair, Mr. E called in Brad, Judy, and Professor Pericles.<p>

"The ruse worked," said Mr. E. "In the confusion, I was able to exchange their pieces for duplicates."

"Perfect," said Professor Pericles.

"All the pieces of..." said Brad.

"The Planespheric Disc are ours!" said Judy.

"I believe it's time to put all of it together," said Mr. E.

Mr. E entered the musical code and they all went down the elevator into the secure room. The piece container was empty except for a single CD.

"I don't understand," said Brad.

"Where are our pieces?" asked Judy.

Mr. E put the CD into a player. An image of Fred came on the screen.

"If you're watching this, you're probably wondering what's happened to your pieces of the Planespheric Disc," said Fred. "In a word, you've been scammed, conned, bamboozled."

"That's three words, Fred, but I think they get the idea," said Daphne. "We, the local team, did this to you."

"Yeah," said Scooby-Doo.

"Except for me, I'm from the out-of-town team," said Norville. "And we will be more than happy to tell you how we did it."

"It was all a plan masterminded by your very own Freddie," said Velma.

"We knew you might try something to get our disc pieces, so we kept a trapped box with duplicates in the Mystery Machine," said Fred.

"We guessed right away that you didn't have the real pieces with you, just fakes" said Velma. "And it was obvious you were entrapping your supposed Head of Security into a crime. Of course a background check would be done for a position that sensitive and it would turn up that he was a dissatisfied customer in disguise."

"So while you were distracted by working on that scheme on team A, team B went ahead to get the real pieces in your lair," said Daphne.

Cassidy Williams moved onto the screen, "You ought to be really sure you've successfully murdered someone who knows your access code to the vault."

"And once we had that code..." said Scooby.

"We could give it to our operative," said Velma. "Someone with intimate knowledge of Mr. E's lair: Hot Dog Water."

"Hot Dog Water?" said Mr. E.

"I still know how to get in touch with her," said Velma, blushing a little.

"Like, when Velma told Hot Dog Water what we had planned, HDW was in," said Norville.

"And while we stole the real pieces..." said Scooby-Doo.

"...You were stealing fake ones," said Fred.

"The real pieces were instead safely hidden with the one person no one would ever suspect," said Daphne. "Fred's fake father, the ex-mayor Jones."

"My not-really-my-dad dad may have betrayed us once to get the disc pieces, but when he heard what we were planning, he was more than glad to help us take you down," said Fred.

"I guess I secretly hoped you guys might not try to steal the pieces from us. But I guess I always knew you would," said Fred. "Real Mom, real Dad, I already knew not to trust you. That's never going to change."

"And we're taking Cassidy with us, too," said Norville, "You don't deserve her, Mr. E."

"Got that right, baby," said Cassidy, putting her arm around Norville.

* * *

><p>The Crystal Cove team (with Norville) got together on the top of their Mystery Machine.<p>

"Oh," said Daphne."Let's see what it looks like - the whole Planespheric Disc."

They put the pieces together and glowing sparkles rose from the device.

"Like, whoa," said Norville.

"It's beautiful," said Velma.

"We have the whole thing," said Fred. "That leaves only one question."

"What do we do now?" asked Scooby.

Deep in a cave in another dimension, the Entity gave its answer with an evil laugh: "Nibiru."


	20. Falconry

**Falconry**

The two Mystery Incorporated groups were meeting at Fred's house. Shaggy and Scooby-Doo were lounging in front of the TV.

"Look, gang," said Shaggy. "The Blue Falcon is on TV."

"Rue Ralcon and Rynomutt?" asked Scoobert (the other Scooby, from a parallel universe).

"Yeah, he's my rero," said Scooby. Unlike his counterpart, his speech was not quite so full of r's.

"Like, is it the new movie series, or the old TV series?" asked Norville (the other Shaggy).

"Like, it's the news," said Shaggy.

"So the Blue Falcon is still an active superhero in this world?" asked Dace (the other Velma). "In our world he retired years ago, and revealed his secret identity as a rich art dealer named Radley Crown."

"I wouldn't call him a superhero," said Cassidy Williams. "I know about him through Mr. E. The Blue Falcon's a down and dirty vigilante."

"Not the one we knew," said Anne (the other Daphne). "He was a true hero. We even helped him on some cases, like with Mr. Hyde."

"We had a case with the Ghost of Mr. Hyde, a jewel thief," said Daphne.

"We had one like that, too. But this wasn't the same guy," said Frederick (the other Fred). "This one had a chemical that could turn people into monsters, and he was blackmailing Big City to become mayor."

"When the Blue Falcon retired and sold TV series rights to his adventures, they stretched that one case into, like, five episodes," said Norville.

"Then someone bought the movie rights, and they cut out Owen Garrison, the actor who played him on TV," said Anne.

"That is, until he got publicity from a new case where a villain impersonated Mr. Hyde and tried to frame him," said Dace. "Then he got a role in the movie sequel."

"Did the Ralcon have Rynomutt?" asked Scooby.

"Yes, a goofy robot dog that was always messing up," said Frederick. "Like a robotic Scooby."

"I resemble rhat remark," said Scoobert.

Cassidy Williams said, "The Dynomutt of our world isn't goofy. Perhaps he comes across that way, but since he works for a vigilante he's very dangerous. He'll cheerfully kill on command for his master."

"Like the dark and edgy movie version they made of our Blue Falcon and Dynomutt," said Dace.

"So Shaggy, what did they say about him on TV?" asked Daphne.

"He's been spotted near Crystal Cove," said Shaggy. "Like, I hope we don't run into him."

"Re too," said Scooby.

"We're not likely to today," said Velma. "I have something to show you at our headquarters at City Hall. Now that we have the entire Planispheric Disk, I was able to find a hidden message on it. I cobbled together a device to decode the message and play it back."

* * *

><p>The device looked like a combination of an old record player and Speak-And-Spell. The Disk pieces were attached in a spiral within the device.<p>

"The sooner we find out what this is supposed to do, the sooner we'll solve the mystery of the cursed treasure," said Velma.

The player clicked, and a single word appeared on its screen: "NIBIRU".

"Nibiru!" said everyone in chorus.

"That's the same word Abigail Gluck said!" said Daphne.

"Gulp! Like, yeah, the one that means Doomsday!" said Shaggy. He and Scooby held each other.

There was a cry in the distance.

"That came from the records room!" said Fred.

Everyone ran to the City Hall records room, where a gray-haired man lay on the floor.

"Gang, look!" said Frederick, pointing his flashlight at the man.

Fred said, "He must have passed out from exhaustion trying to load this vintage reel-to-reel hi-fi stereo."

"That's not a stereo, Fred," said Velma. "It's an old mainframe computer. And whoever made this mess must have surprised the old clerk – and they could still be here."

There was a flash of blue electricity, revealing a huge metallic dragon-like figure with its hands in one of the computers. It roared and leaped at them, but a blast from the ceiling knocked it back.

The gangs looked up, and saw a huge hole in the roof. Through the hole they could see a huge, powerfully-built man wearing a mask and a cape, with a masked gray dog beside him.

"Jinkies! - " said Dace.

"I can't believe it," said Fred.

"It's - The Blue Falcon!" said Norville.

"And Rynomutt, Rog Ronder!" said Scoobert.

The Blue Falcon leaped down in front of the Dragon.

"Better think twice, dirt bag, if you have nerve endings and pain centers like any other perp."

Dynomutt flew down to the floor with helicopter blades that extended from a panel in his back.

"Let's make this dragon scream," said Blue Falcon.

"Whatever you say, B.F." said the Dog Wonder in a cheerful voice.

The masked man and his dog engaged the monster in combat, dodging fire blasts from the creature while attacking it with bolo cables and bombs. The gangs took cover behind the computers.

"Hmm. I can't say I fully endorse the concept of a masked vigilante," said Velma.

"Velma! He's a superhero with a belt full of traps!" said Fred.

The fight continued, with Blue Falcon barely holding his own against the monster while Dynomutt provided sometimes useful, sometimes ridiculous assistance (including a fishing magician to de-scale, de-bone, and de-stinkify fish in half the time).

The monster temporarily seemed to tire, but then it roused itself and blasted away through the hole the Falcon had left in the ceiling.

The Blue Falcon became aware of the young people in the room.

"Don't even breathe," the Falcon said. "There are 17 methods to incapacitate you, and all of them hurt."

"We're not bad guys, Mr. Falcon," said Fred.

Hearing his hypnotic code word, Norville snapped into his fearless persona.

"We're Mystery, Incorporated," said Norville with complete confidence.

"Corporate greed is another symptom of a society rotting from the inside out," said the Blue Falcon.

Scooby and Shaggy came up to Dynomutt.

"You're my hero!" said Scooby.

"Yeah," said Shaggy. "Like, me and Scoob watch you guys on the news all the time! We solve mysteries and catch bad guys, just like you!"

(Norville reverted to his normal cowardly self.)

"Are you an unstoppable, perfect crime-stopping machine?" Dynomutt asked Scooby.

Shaggy laughed. "No. He messes up all the time."

"In that case, put 'er there, pal," said Dynomutt, putting out a gloved paw.

"What brings you to Crystal Cove, Blue Falcon?" asked Daphne.

"We've been tracking that dragon creature in hopes it would lead us to its evil master," said the Falcon.

"Well, masked man, Crystal Cove is our turf," said Velma. "You want a mystery solved and a villain unmasked, you talk to us."

Blue Falcon scowled at this, but Dog Wonder extended a nose to sniff them.

"Hey, blue buddy, I like the smell of these kids. Why don't we let them tag along?"

"Very well," said the Falcon. "But you should know that should I need to sacrifice any of you to get my prey, I'll gladly do it."

He shot up a grappling hook and flew out through the ceiling.

"Oh, B.F. " giggled Dynomutt. Then he turned to the gangs and said seriously, "He's not kidding, either."

Dace said, "Can you get your blue buddy to hold on for a minute? Velma and I may be able to hack into the City Hall computer system and find out exactly what that dragon was after."

* * *

><p>While Dace and Velma worked, Scooby, Scoobert, and Dynamutt chatted about chasing squirrels.<p>

Fred and Daphne talked too.

"Fred, I've noticed your ascots are filthy. Couldn't you do your laundry once in a while?"

"I'm living on the edge, at home without my parents," said Fred. "Sometimes I have to skip the niceties."

"What's going to happen if someone you care about- but who's still on the fence about you- wants to-I don't know- visit by herself?"

"I suppose I could move the shark cage out my room to make more space," said Fred. "But the lizard hammock stays.

I'm firm on that."

Daphne turned away with a disgusted groan.

Anne approached her. "Daphne, I couldn't help but overhear. The more I see you reconciling with Fred, the more I'm encouraged about me and Frederick."

"Don't be too encouraged," said Daphne. "Fred's oblivious to my feelings, as usual."

"You were engaged once," said Anne. "That's much further than I ever got."

"He broke it off to go find his real parents," said Daphne. "And he picked up the hygenic habits of a hobo in the process."

"That makes it tough," said Anne.

"I told him we could just be friends and he accepted that," said Daphne. "But I'm pretty sure we'll get back together eventually."

Anne said, "Thank you, that really helps."

Velma showed Blue Falcon the results on her laptop.

"City Hall records. How'd you get past the encryption?" asked the Falcon.

"I may not have a bird-themed utility belt and a predisposition for violence, but I do have some mad skills of my own," said Velma.

"And from the looks of things, so does our dragon," said the Falcon. "He was going through old sales records of all Crystal Cove businesses."

"With a special eye toward this one-Quest Industries," said Velma. "It was a cutting-edge tech firm until it was sold to Crystal Cove's most prominent corporation."

"Destroido?" said everyone in chorus as the name came up on the screen.

"Hold on," said Cassidy Williams. "We're not going anywhere near Destroido right now."

"I take it you've had dealings with this vile corporation before, and that it's corrupt to its soulless core," said Blue Falcon.

"We're well-acquainted with the owner Ricky Owens, codename Mr. E.," said Fred.

"Too well-acquainted," said Cassidy. "Given some things that happened between us recently, it would be foolish to go there. Don't forget, his parrot tried to kill me."

"Then we part ways here," said the Falcon. "Because that's exactly where I plan to attack next."

"Good luck," said Cassidy, patting Dynomutt's head.

The two superheros left quickly through the hole in the roof.

"Cassidy, that was a mistake," said Norville. "Like, you talked us right out of the case."

"We can follow up a different lead," said Cassidy. "I think it will be more interesting to go directly to Quest Industries."

"But Blue Falcon might need our help," said Daphne.

"He might," said Cassidy, "Which is why I just planted a tracer on Dynomutt when I patted him."

* * *

><p>Dr. Quest (already a friend of the gang from previous cases) was willing to fill them in about the origin of Dynomutt.<p>

"Radley Crown used to work for us as a security guard. He had a beloved guard dog who worked with him, named Reggie. One night a dragon-armored villain broke into the lab, and Reggie was nearly electrocuted as a result of biting into the armor," said Dr. Quest.

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "What happened then?"

"We repaired Reggie in the Questlab," said Dr. Quest. "We rebuilt him stronger, better. We made him into Dynomutt."

"How come you put all those attachments in Rynomutt?" asked Scooby. "Rike a fishing magician?"

"Row's rhere renough room?" asked Scoobert.

"There is a quantum superposition of unlimited equipment possibilities, to be summoned at will," said Dr. Quest.

"It's not that difficult," said Dace. "I made a Dogbot myself once, inspired by Dynomutt."

"Did you ever find out what the Dragon wanted at Questlabs?" asked Velma.

"Not exactly," said Dr. Quest. "It was probably industrial espionage. I had just completed the Quest-X power source, and I know my old enemy Dr. Zin would do anything to obtain it."

"Could the Dragon have been working for Dr. Zin?" asked Daphne.

"That's a possibility," said Dr. Quest. "That Dragon armor is his sort of fiendish work."

"If Zin is still after the Quest-X power source, that may explain the raid on City Hall today," said Velma. "Zin might assume that your new corporate owner, Destroido, took over the invention for development."

"That assumption would be incorrect," said Dr. Quest. "We used the only prototype of the Quest-X for a vital purpose."

"Like, what?" asked Shaggy.

"To power the cyborg heart of Dynomutt," said Dr. Quest.

"Then what the Dragon wants is inside Dynomutt himself!" said Fred.

"Rynomutt's rin ranger!" said Scoobert.

There was a beeping sound from the tracking device in Cassidy's pocket. She got it out and looked at it.

"Bad news, gang," said Cassidy. "According to this, Dynomutt's just been captured."

* * *

><p>The groups put their heads together for a rescue plan.<p>

"It looks like Dynomutt is being taken to Volcano Island, offshore," said Cassidy. "It would be a great place for a lair for someone like Dr. Zinn."

"Volcano Island? Funny, you'd think we'd know about a smoking volcano so close to our town," said Velma.

"It's almost unknown in town, but when E. did the historical research he discovered it was the location of the final showdown between Dead Justice and Nitro Wisinski, back when it used to be connected to the mainland by a narrow land bridge," said Cassidy.

"But how do we get there?" asked Anne.

"You've come to the right place," said Dr. Quest. "I have a small amphibious plane with the latest in stealth technology that you can use. Like the costume of the Obliteratrix, it has invisibility features."

"Who here can fly a plane?" asked Velma.

"I can," said Fred. "I learned the basics of escaping from airplane trap situations."

"I could drive it," said Shaggy.

Anne and Norville also put up their hands.

"Like, we flew all over the place as crime reporters," said Norville.

"You need a real expert. Race Bannon will pilot it for you," said Dr. Quest. "And I'd like you to take my sons Johnny and Hadji along. They're been itching for an adventure."

Race said, "I wish we could, Doctor Quest, but with the two Scooby gangs plus Cassidy, we just can't fit anyone else in the plane."

* * *

><p>Race managed an amphibious landing near the island without incident, just barely evading detection because of the plane's invisibility technology and his expert piloting.<p>

The gang found the entrance to Zin's lair, where both Blue Falcon and Dynomutt were restrained against the wall with metal clamps.

"I'll tell you everything about the Quest-X power source," said the Falcon. "Just don't hurt my dog!"

"Thank you, B.F.," said Dynomutt.

"You will soon have enough power for a lifetime, my dragon," said Zin.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I was you, Zin," said Fred as the gang entered.

"Get them!" Zin called to his guards.

The martial arts skills of Cassidy, Anne, Race, and Norville (in "bad" mode) made short work of the goons. The rest of the gang helped also with their own impromptu fighting techniques, like Fred and Daphne's back-to-back kicking combo. They soon had the Falcon and Dynomutt free from the clamps.

"New look?" Dynomutt asked Shaggy on seeing his combat war-paint.

"I had some makeup left over from military school," said Shaggy.

They found Zin bending over the figure of the Dragon, which had slumped to the floor.

"I have failed you, my dragon," said Zin. "What bitterness to lose with the Quest-X power source in our grasp."

Zin pointed at Dynomutt. "It's all your fault!"

"My fault? Gee, what'd I do? I hadn't a clue!" said Dynomutt.

"Allow me to elucidate, Dog Wonder," said Blue Falcon.

The Falcon told Dynomutt the story the gang had already heard at Quest Labs, about how Reggie the security dog had become Dynomutt, a cyborg powered by the Quest-X power source.

"But Dynomutt wasn't the only cyborg created in that explosion, was he, Dr. Zin?" asked Velma.

"No," said Zin. "Stealing the Quest-X was to be a trial run for my greatest creation- the dragon battle suit. So precious was this invention, I trusted only one person to test it- my own daughter. The accident fused the suit to Jenny and has been feeding off of her life force ever since. How did you know?"

"I guessed after seeing the way the Dragon reacted when it was weak, like a human and not a robot," said Velma.

"But why the obsession with Dynomutt?" asked Fred.

"Not the dog, the Quest-X inside!" said Zin. "With that to power the dragon suit, my Jenny would survive. But now..."

"I had no idea," said Blue Falcon.

"Oh, my goodness gracious! Why didn't you say so?" said Dynomutt. "Never to busy to help a fellow cyborg with a jump start."

Dynomutt extended a power cable from his chest and plugged it into the Dragon.

"Dog Wonder, no! The feedback could destroy you both!" said the Falcon.

Glowing blue energy enveloped both the Dragon and the cyborg dog.

"It's gonna blow!" Fred shouted.

But after a brilliant flash of white light, the chest of the Dragon opened and a young woman fell free.

"Father?" said Jenny.

"Jenny!" said Zin, with tears in his eyes.

"Aww! Isn't that sweet?" said Scooby, giggling.

"Robot dog, meddling kids and adults, man in bird suit, you have my thanks," said Zin. "I have spent so many years pursuing my evil plan of global domination, I sometimes forget the beauty of a simple act of selfless kindness."

Panels opened in the floor behind the mastermind and his daughter, extending escape rocket packs to them, which they quickly put on.

"It's a pity you must all now be destroyed as this island explodes with the fury of 1,000 suns!"

"Good one, dad! Let's motor," said Jenny.

They blasted away as the base's self-destruct mechanisms set in and the island began to cave in.

"Well, for an evil, crazed scientist, he certainly has a unique sense of humor," said Dynomutt.

"Let's get out of here!" said Shaggy.

"Yipe!" said Scooby.

Dynomutt formed into a life raft, and in it they got out of the range of the explosion, which wiped out Dr. Quest's plane (as well as all the unfortunate henchmen that were left behind).

"This is not over," said Blue Falcon. "I'll hunt him. I'll find him. And when I do..."

"Dude! Would you give it a rest? Zin isn't all that bad," said Shaggy.

The Blue Falcon looked at him, and growled.

"After all, he loves his daughter almost as much as we love our dogs."

Dynomutt extended his neck to lick Blue Falcon, the Scoobys licked their respective Shaggys, and everyone laughed.


	21. Theatrical Threat

**Theatrical Threat**

It was evening, and the combined gang drove up to Daphne's mansion in the local version of the Mystery Machine. They parked on the side of the house rather than the driveway, because they were sneaking in.

"Up the servant staircase, quick!" said Daphne.

"But Daphne, you don't have to do this," said Fred.

"Yes, Fred, I do," said Daphne. "I think you'll be safer here, now that we have all the pieces of the Planespheric Disk. We don't want your parents coming after you in your old house."

"I have my traps to protect me," said Fred.

Velma said, "But your parents are trap experts, and Pericles once hacked into your whole system."

Daphne led them into a large room with a billiard table and couch.

"Woah," said Shaggy.

"You and Nova should be okay in here," said Daphne.

"I'll visit you every day," Scooby-Doo told Nova, who preened herself with her paw.

Shaggy's cell phone beeped. "Like, it's a text from Vincent Van Ghoul."

He showed off the message, which read "HEEP!" followed by many more exclamation points.

"Heep? What the heck's that mean?" asked Scooby.

"Zoinks, Van Ghoul!" said Norville, the other Shaggy. "What does that creepy warlock want now?"

"He's a movie star," said Shaggy. "Like, he's not a real warlock, but he played one in 'The Pit and the Pendulous'."

"In our world he was very real," said Anne. "And so were the ghosts we fought with his help. Thirteen ghosts that we had to get back into a Chest of Demons before they took over the world."

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "All of you were in on this?"

"Just me, Norville, Scoobert, and the puppy you don't like us to mention," said Anne. "Plus Van Ghoul and a young con artist named Flim Flam."

Shaggy and Daphne flinched at that name.

"Flim Flam! Like, you're sure this was all real?" asked Shaggy.

"Rabsolutely," said Scoobert, the other Scooby.

Velma asked her counterpart, "Dace, do you endorse this?"

Dace said, "I wasn't involved in the Thirteen Ghosts adventure, but I have to admit that some of our cases have had genuine supernatural elements. Very rarely, but it can happen."

"I'm surprised at you," said Velma.

"Our Flim Flam is in prison for fraud," said Daphne. "So is his Van Ghoul impersonator accomplice. There were supposed to be thirteen ghosts and a Chest of Demons, but it was all a huge scam. We caught on before we got to the last two fake ghosts."

"Like, we didn't finish our case, either," said Norville. "Supposedly, Scoobert and I had to be the ones to put the ghosts back in the chest, because we let them out. But the last time, Flim Flam just sucked up the ghost with a vacuum machine and popped it into the chest without any help from us, and it stayed in. That's when Scoob and I quit."

"Rey ridn't really reed us," said Scoobert.

"Van Ghoul and Flim Flam took it from there," said Norville. "They finished up the rest of the ghosts just fine."

"I was disgusted with you for a while, that you quit with the fate of the world at stake," said Anne. "That's when we broke up... umm, I mean... we broke up as a mystery-solving team."

Frederick, the other Fred, nodded at this, oblivious to the implications of Anne's slip of the tongue. The local Daphne and Shaggy's faces also turned red and they looked at the ground, but the local Fred was likewise oblivious.

Cassidy Williams was more perceptive, but she just moved close to Norville and whispered, "Don't worry, boyfriend. It was all in the past; it's nothing I'm going to get jealous over."

"Well, let's go see our world's Van Ghoul and see what's up," said Velma. "He may have another problem we can help with, like the time we caught the fake Nightfright monster that was haunting his reality show."

* * *

><p>Van Ghoul met them at the Crystal Cove Haunted Historical Society Theater, on the stage with a ruined set.<p>

"I meant to type 'HELP.' I'm no good with these new-fangled gadgets," said Van Ghoul. "But I was in such a panicked state. Mayor Nettles called and asked me to take over the play. Evidently, the director and the star suddenly quit. Obviously, I jumped at the chance. I'm a great supporter of amateur dramatics. And truth be told, my career could use a goose."

He gestured to the broken set.

"But when I arrive, I find the set's been destroyed. And worse, the only copy of the script has been ripped to pieces! What am I to do?"

Van Ghoul sank to the ground and began to cry.

"Don't worry, Mr. Van Ghoul," said Shaggy.

"We'll help you," said Scooby.

"We will?" chorused the other members of the local gang.

"We will," said Shaggy firmly. "After all the times you guys have gotten Scooby and I in trouble, - you owe us."

"Big time," said Scooby.

"Please?" begged Van Ghoul.

"Well...OK," said Fred.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you!" said Van Ghoul, embracing Fred to his great embarrassment.

"This I got to see," said a voice behind them.

"George Avocados?" chorused the gang.

"That's AvOCados," said the man in a blue uniform, correcting the pronunciation as he gestured dramatically with his push broom.

"Mr. Avocados, what are you doing here?" asked Daphne (not correcting the way she said his name).

"Sweeping. That's what a janitor does, isn't it?" said Avocados.

"Janitor?" chorused everyone.

"After my farm was ruined by pollution from Destroido, the only job I could get was back here at City Hall as a janitor! And a good thing, too. Now I get to watch you all make fools of yourselves trying to put on that play. And when you fail, I'll be here to clean up your mess."

Avocados began an evil laugh, but he was cut short by his boss. "Avocados! Back to work."

"That's AvOCados," the janitor muttered sullenly.

The two gangs set to work repairing the set, while Velma looked through the torn-up script.

"Most of the script's missing, but it looks like they were trying to tell the story of Friar Serra and his donkey Porto," said Velma.

"The ones who saved everyone when the first town of Crystal Cove sank into the ocean?" asked Van Ghoul.

"Mm-hmm," said Velma.

"Like, the same underwater town with those killer robots?" asked Shaggy.

"Bingo."

"Huh?" said Shaggy. Both he and Scooby began to whimper.

"I still don't understand why Mr. LeFranc and Doogle would smash the set and run off like that," said Daphne.

"Typical theater folk," said Van Ghoul. "I once saw Lionel Barrymore attack a settee with a lead pipe. But we'll show them who the true professionals are."

Frederick spoke up. "There's got to be more to this. Remember, we're Mystery Incorporated. No matter what we're involved in, there's always a monster case."

"Like, every time?" said Shaggy.

"Every time," said Dace.

"It was true for the old Mystery Incorporated, too," said Cassidy.

"While you guys help Mr. Van Ghoul with the production, we'll open an investigation," said Frederick. "We'll find the person in the monster suit behind all this and save the show from getting messed up any further."

"If you want to check it out, go ahead," said Fred. "Whether there's a case or not, we'll have plenty to do in fixing the show."

"But what about the actors?" asked Shaggy.

"Stop! Don't move," said Van Ghoul. "That chin! That nose!"

He pointed to Shaggy and Scooby.

"You shall be Friar Gabriello Serra, and you shall be his donkey Porto."

"Wow. A donkey!" said Scooby,

"I should be able to rebuild the set," said Fred.

"And I can make the costumes," said Daphne.

"And I'll finish writing the play," said Velma.

"Oh, I love it," said Van Ghoul. "It's so cliche!"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, the Coolsville gang began their investigation.<p>

"Who should we talk to first?" asked Cassidy. "Mayor Nettles? She asked Van Ghoul to take over the play, so she must know the whole story."

"Her information is second-hand," said Dace. "I think we should talk to an eyewitness, like LeFranc or Doogle MGuiness."

"Let's try Doogle first, since we know where he lives from the Hebediah Grimm case," said Anne.

They drove to Doogle's house and found him there, in hiding.

"I'm embarrassed to be seen in public after that fiasco," said the young actor. "I've been attacked by a ghost before, but never upstaged by one. It's traumatic."

"So, like, there was a ghost?" asked Norville.

"The mummy of Friar Serra came to life and attacked us. He said that anyone who dares tell his story is doomed."

"Rummy!" said Scoobert. "Roh-oh."

"The mummy came to life, you say, so the mummy was already there?" asked Dace.

"Yes, along with all sorts of props from the Burlington Library, which were supposed to add historical realism. I fail to see how having his mummy onstage would enhance my performance as the living Friar Serra, but what do librarians know about the thespian arts?"

"Where's Mr. Lefranc?" asked Frederick. "We'd like to speak to him, too."

"Who knows? He disappeared," said Doogle. Why do you want him?"

"He knew about the mummy in advance, so it's possible he staged the attack for some reason," said Cassidy.

"I doubt he staged that. The mummy bit off his wig," said Doogle.

"Rit off ris rig?" asked Scoobert.

"Like, you're probably right," said Norville. "He wouldn't make himself look ridiculous."

"If you're going back to the theater soon, would you do me a favor? I want to get my costume back. It was custom-made to hide my inherited buttocks dysplasia," said Doogle.

"We'll see what we can do," said Anne. "I'm sure your replacement will be getting a new costume of his own."

"Replacement?" asked Doogle.

"We're helping Mr. Van Ghoul put on the play without you," said Frederick.

"I am the finest actor in Crystal Cove! I cannot be replaced! If you do this play, you're doomed," said Doogle. "Now get out."

He shoved them out and slammed the door behind them.

"Anyway, we have valuable information," said Frederick. "Let's head back to the theater and prepare our traps before the mummy ghost attacks again."

"Rummy rhost," moaned Scoobert.

"Like, that's twice as much monster," said Norville.

* * *

><p>Velma was down below the stage with a flashlight, looking in the crates from Burlington Library for information about the life of Friar Serra and Porto. She heard a hiss and felt something move behind her.<p>

"Huh?" she said, looking at an empty glass casket. "That's weird."

Another ghastly hiss made her turn around. "Hello? Anybody there?"

Moving forward to investigate, Velma tripped and her glasses fell off. When she got them on again she was face to face with the Mummy of Friar Sera, glowing green in the dark. It roared at her as she tried to back away.

She ran for the stairs with the Mummy close behind. Just as she had almost reached the top, it grabbed her by one leg. She was kicking herself free when the stairs suddenly flattened out into a slide, depositing both her and the monster into a net which had sprung up at the bottom of the stairs.

"Hey Velma," Fred called out. "What do you think of that one? I took what the other Fred said to heart about a possible monster case, so I started building traps into the stage as I repaired it. You can never be too prepared."

"Get me out!" Velma called. "I'm stuck in here with the monster!"

By this time the others (who had been watching old Van Ghoul movies to learn his acting techniques) heard the noise and rushed down to see what was going on. Shaggy and Scooby slipped on the slide and crashed down on top of the Mummy Ghost, luckily also tearing Velma free.

Fred pushed a button and the stairs straightened out again. "Now we'll see who this ghostly monk really is."

"George Avocados?" everyone chorused after the mask was removed.

"That's AvOC- Aw, forget it. That's right, it's me."

* * *

><p>With the criminal case out of the way, rehearsals proceeded quickly.<p>

Shaggy was reciting:

"Everybody, listen to me.  
>The city, she is, like, uh, falling into the sea.<br>Come with us if you want to live."

"Uh, I'm a donkey?" said Scooby.

The Ghost of Friar Serra burst up through the floor and flew at them. "You must not evoke the memory of Nibiru! The telling of the story must never be heard! He will feed on it. Nibiru will grow stronger, and you will never be able to stop him!"

The ghost grabbed Velma, flew up into the air with her, and dropped her, but Fred caught her. Then the ghost circled around and came after Van Ghoul. Fred turned on the bright stage lights and the ghost faded away, still shrieking about Nibiru.

"A second fake ghost?" asked Velma.

"This might be a real one. It mentioned Nibiru, which nobody knows about but us," said Dace.

"And Professor Pericles, since we heard it in his underwater laboratory," said Daphne. "Maybe it's him."

"Very not good, since he could easily put the entire audience in danger," said Dace. "I suggest we change to a different play."

"We can't back down under threats," said Fred.

"Yeah, we can," said Shaggy.

"Reah," said Scooby and Scoobert together.

"Well, I did have an idea for another play," said Velma. "The founding of the Benevolent Society of Mystery by Oswald P. Burlington."

"Where would we get actors for a whole new production at the last minute?" asked Van Ghoul.

"It's a mystery solving team that was a lot like us. There are parts for everyone: Fred as Burlington (with Frederick as a back-up), Daphne as Marianne Blanchard, Shaggy as Scotty O'Rourke, and myself as Abigail Gluck."

"Oh no, Abigail Gluck," said Shaggy, remembering.

"Rhat about me?" asked Scooby.

"You can be Mr. Peaches, the friendly talking orangutan," said Velma. "Just say his name with a stutter."

"Ruh-ruh-ruh-Reaches," said Scoobert.

"Like that," said Velma.

* * *

><p>The new play went well. The critic Valdesh Helgenjew panned it for being absurd, but not absurd enough. All but Van Ghoul shrugged that off because the audience enjoyed it.<p>

After the show, the ghost of Friar Serra appeared to them again and told them the true story of the destruction of Crystal Cove, how the donkey Porto was corrupted by an Evil Entity, so that he blew up the town with kegs of gunpowder, then fled into the swamps where he fell prey to alligators.

"Heed the warning of the alligators!" the ghost said, fading away. "The dog dies!"

Scooby gulped. "The dog dies? Is he talking about me?"

"Or raybe re," said Scoobert.


End file.
